MRS. BASLEY'S 

POULTRY 

BOOK 



200, BAl 




The Chicken Business from First to Last 
Including 



1001 Questions 
and Answers 




May find under our Big Roof 
a large stock of goods useful 
in their work. 

We make to order neat fit- 
ting, cleanly and durable Out- 
ing 'Clothing for both men and 
women. 

We provide Storm Clothing, 
Mackintosh and Rubber Boots, 
likewise Rubber Shoes and Arc- 
tics. 

We carry a large stock of 
Buckskin, Rubber and Canvas 
Gloves, Canvas Leggins and 
Hats, Knit Norfolk Coats and 
Sweater Jackets. 

Out of town people may trade 
readily with us by sending for 
our illustrated literature, mailed 
post paid. 

Men's Suit and Boot Catalogue 

Women's Outing Suit Catalogue 

Tent and Camping Goods Catalogue 



Standard Duch. 29 IncHes 

7 ounce, 14c 8 ounce, 1 6c 10 ounce, 19c 



<" 



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Irrigation Hose... 

1% inch 4 inch 9 inch 

2 Ml inch 6 inch 13 inch 
Coated or plain. Send for prices. 



KODAKS... 

Developing 
Printing 



Tilie Yfia 







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Sunset Ex. 87 



138-40-42 SOUTH MAIN 

LOS ANGELES, CAL. 



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Sold on Free Trial to Anyone Anywhere. 
130. 260, 340 and 612 Egg Size. 



INVESTIGATE 



THIS high class Incubator before you buy any other at any 
price. We ow^n our o^wn builaing, pay no rents, and can un- 
dersell by many dollars all other dealers in incubators and 
brooders. All incubators are made from first grade clear redwood 
wool padded tops, double walls, lined -with heavy felt paper, hot water 
heating system, 14 oz. cold rolled copper heater, special long lever 
automatic self regulator. Our machines will hold an exact even 
temperature, no -watching them at night. See them hatching thous- 
ands of chicks here any time. Our heater is better than any other 
used on any incubator at any price. Automatic m admitting free 
air. Investigate this machine and save many dollars and get the best 
at any price. Free 32 page book contains lectures on chick raising, 
etc. Its free, send for it today. 



E. E. Mc CLAN AH AN 

112 East 8th Street Los Angeles, Cal. 



Doke Poultry Supply Co. 

108-110-112 East Eighth Street 
Los Angeles, Cal. 

Main S651 r-163S 

WHOLESALE and RETAIL 

Dealers in all goods in the poultry business. Our business nas 
gro"wn m four years rrom a room 10x12 in a barn lort to our o^vn 
building at 108-110-112 East 8tb Street, 52x80. Wby? Because 
■we sell tbe best goods at tne lo-west prices. Vv^e carry a full line 
or Poultry Supplies and can give you prices on anything from one 
bag to a carload. A few of our leaders are : 

Beef Scrap, Blood Meal, Bone Meal, Alfalfa Meal, 
Clam Shell, Oyster Shell, Grit, Meat Meal, Charcoal, 
Scratch Feed, Egg Food, Chick Feed, Roup Cure, 
Lice Killer. 

WRITE rOR PRICES 

CHICKS, in dozen, hundred or thousand lots. Send 
for price list on chicks and eggs. We ship everywhere. 



Mr. 'W. W^. Ho'Warcl, The well-known White Leghorn Expert, says: 
"1 am feeding Excelsior Egg Food exclusively to my poultry, and I know of noth ng better." 

Excelsior Egg Food E Excelsior Scratch Food 

Is a rich, nitrogenous ration, \^ . , „ i r i 

honestly compounded. Pro- ^^ A carefully prepared food, 

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Properly balanced to form | Adds two to three pounds of 

bone, tissue, and muscle, and to ^N clean, white meat to market 

develop healthy chicks. V^ fowls, so much sought by select 

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Get Excelsior Poultry Foods through your dealer, if you can; if you can't, GET 
Excelsior Poultry Foods; we wi 1 supply you direct. 

EXCELSIOR. CEREAL MILLING CO., 

242 Central Avenue Los Angeles, Cal. 



MRS. BASLEY'S 
POULTRY BOOK 

Tells you 

What to Do and 
How to Do It 



The Chicken Business from First to Last 

Including 

1 00 1 Que^ions and Answers 

Relative to Up-to-date Poultry Culture 



Published by Mrs. A. Basley and Felix G. Kertson 
624-625 Chamber of Commerce Bldg. 

Los Angeles, California 



1908 



LIB(^AI|IV of coNdfrtssf 

Two Copies Received J 

NOV 20 1908 I 

CLASS Cl. XXc, No. I 






^;v 






INTRODUCTION 



In the hope of helping beginners and others of my friends in the 
poultry business, and in response to urgent requests for a book on poultry 
culture from my pen, I offer this little volume. 

It is a synopsis of many chapters of my "Woman's Work in the Poul- 
try Yard" and other talks on poultry, and embodies the personal, practical 
experiences I have been through myself in many years'^ of. pleasa'nt'/work 
in the poultry yard. Its object is not necessarily to urge anyone into the 
business, but to encourage and help beginners and especially newcomers 
on the Pacific Coast, where conditions differ materially from those in the 
East and where there is an increasingly large demand for both poultry 
and eggs; where the poultry business is about as profitable as any that 
can be undertaken and a good living may be made in the pure air and sun- 
shine Iby any industrious man or woman. 

Having for many years been lecturer at the Farmers' Institutes in the 
Extension Courses of the University of California and having been editor 
or associate editor of four agricultural and other newspapers on the Pacific 
Coast, many questions have during this time been propounded to me 
relating to the poultry business, its difficulties, the troubles of poultry 
raisers and the ailments of fowls. Some of these thousand and one questions 
will be found in this book with the answers to them, also remedies for 
the diseases or ills of fowls in this climate. 

Hoping and feeling sure that my little book may prove a help to all 
its readers, I am 

Very cordially your friend. 



/Zz.t^ — ^U.yf^l-^'-^c/^ 



-^ 




Mrs. a. Basley 



Copyright 1908 by 
F. G. Kertson 



TABLE of CONTENTS 



Common Sense Poultry Houses 9 

What Variety to Choose I5 

Eggs for Breeding 25 

Eggs for Market 29 

Feeding in All Its Phases ZZ 

Sample Rations 35 

Dry Food Method z(> 

Testing Eggs for Incubation 38 

Natural Incubation 41 

Artificial Incubation 46 

Care of Brooder Chicks 5t 

White Diarrhoea in Brooder Chicks 55 

Summer Work 58 

Trap Nest 61 

Grit and Gizzard 65 

Symptoms of Grit Craving 67 

■ Pests of a Poultry Yard 68 

Kerosene Emulsion 69 

Diseases of Poultry /O 

Town Lot Fowls li 

r^Ioulting Season 76 

Value of Economy 80 

Preserving Eggs 84 

Capons • ■ • 87 

Getting Ready for the Show , 93 

Turkeys and How to Raise Them 95 

Ducks in Their Varieties 103 

Something About Geese 109 

Questions and Answers 1 13 

Cause and Cure of Sickness ri5 

Lice, !Mites, Ticks and Worms 134 

Feeding in General I39 

Egg Question 149 

Moulting Season 154 

Hatching with Incubator and Hen 156 

Poultry Houses 161 

Yard Room 162 

Mating and Breeding 163 

Questions of Beginners 166 

^Miscellaneous Questions and Answers 170 

From the Sandwich Islands 180 

Turkey Questions and Answers 183 

About Ducks and Geese 189 



CLASSIFIED INDEX 



A 

A Few Points 168 

Abnormal Growth 129 

Advice Wanted 172 

Ag-e for Mating 165 

Air Puff 115 

Airing' Eg'gs in Incubator 156 

Alfalfa 140-145-146 

American Class 17 

Analysis of Barley 139 

Animal Food 26-139-144-148 

Apoplexy 115 

Artificial Incubation 46 

Asiatic Class 19 

B 

Bad Meat 139 

Balanced Ration 30-75 

Bald Head 117 

Barley 139-143 

Bedbugs 68 

Beginner's Questions 169-187 

Beet Tops 140 

Best Breeds for Broilers 175 

Best Fowls for Beginners 168-169 

Best Grit 65 

Best Layers 151 

Best Time for Caponizing 68 

Blind Chicks 117 

Blisters 121 

Blood Meal 139-141 

Blood Spots in Egg's 130-151 

Body Lice 134 

Bowel Eating- 119 

Breeds and Classes 16 

Breeds, Selection of 23 

Breeding 165-192 

Breeding to Lay 29 

Breeding Turkeys 184 

Breathing Difficulty 122 

Broilers, Breeds for 23 

Broilers, Ration for 35 

Broken China for Grit 66 

Brooders 52 

Brooder Chicks, Care of 51 

Bronchitis 116 

Bulletin on Feeds 32 

Bumble Foot 115 

Burglar Alarm 162 

C 

Cancer 120 

Canker 71-118 

Cannibalism 119 

Capons 87-173 

Capons as Brooders 89 

Catarrh 119-130 

Catarrh 70 

Carbohydrates 33 

Care of Brooder Chicks 51 

Castor Bean Bushes 173 

Chicks, Care of 51 

Chicks Dying 158-159-173 

Chicks for Breeding 35 

Chicks, Marking- 45 

Chicks, Rations for 35 

Chicken Pox 121 

Chili Peppers 141 

Choosing Eggs for Hatching 27 

Cleanliness 29 

Colony Houses 13 

Color of Feathers and Skin 79 

Comb Discolored 116-121-133 

Comfort 29-53 



Common Sense Poultry Houses 10 

Congestion of the Brain 119 

Consumption 132 

Colds 71-118-187 

Cooling Eg-g-s 48 

Corns on Feet 115 

Cough and Sneeze 119-120 

Crippled Chicks 85-157 

Crop Bound 120 

Crossing Breeds 165-166 

D 

Diarrhoea 52-55 

Different Breeds 16 

Dipping for Lice 77-134-138-177 

Diptheric Roup 71-129 

Diseases 70-115' 

Distinguishing Pullets 177 

Droppings Colored 122 

Dropsy 128 

Dry Feed System 34-36 

Dry Hopper Method 59-140 

Dry Mash 140 

Drying Box for Show Birds 92 

Dying in Shell 158 

Duck Eggs vs. Hen Eggs 189 

Ducks 22-103-189 

Ducks Need Grit 66 

Dumpy, Old Hen 122 

Dusting the Hen 44 

E 

Eating Combs 174 

Economy in Different Ways 80 

Elbow Room Needed 52 

Enlarged Liver 127 

Egg, Analysis of 32 

Egg Bound 152 

Egg Eating 153 

Egg-Food 139 

Egg Question 149 

Egg Route 60 

Egg Tester 27-43 

Eggs, Breeds for 23 

Eggs for Breeding 25-27 

Eggs for Hatching 40-47-159 

Eggs for Market 29 

Eggs — Thin Shells 67 

Eggs, 200 a year 29 

English Class 19 

Essentials 29 

Exercise 29-30-141 

Expert Opinion 51 

Eyes Swollen 131 

Fall on Their Sides and Die 177 

Fats 33 

Fattening Cockerels 36-144 

Fatty Degeneration of Liver 127 

Favorite Breeds for Caponizing. .. 23-88 

Feather Pulling 122 

Feeding 26-30-33-34-77 

Feeding Chicks 53-178 

Feeding Corn 187 

Feeding During Moult 77 

Feeding Ducks. 107 

Feeding in General 139-178 

Feeding for Market 144 

Feeding Turkeys 97 

Fertilitv in Duck Eggs 191 

Fertility in Eggs 25-27 

Fleas 68-134 

French Class 20 

Fresh Meat 139 



CLASSIFIED INDEX 



From Far Away Alaska 173 

From the Sandwich Islands 180 

Fooling- the Hen 158 

Food — Good and Bad for Ducks.... 189 

Food Elements 33 

Forcing- the Moult 144 

Formula for Feeding 75-142 



G 



-109- 



21 
192 
176 
183 
152 

93 
137 
145 
151 
190 
124 
145 
145 



Game Class 

Geese 

Geese and Ducks 

General Care of Turkeys 

Getting- Hens to Lay 

Getting Ready for the Show 

Gizzard Worms .*. . . 

Glass as Grit 

Good Laying Pullets 

Good Ration for Ducks 

Green Droppings 

Green Food 26-83-140-143- 

Grit and Gizzard 65- 



H 

Hamburg- Class 21 

Hatching 44-46 

Hatching- With Incubator and Hen.. 156 

Hatching Ducks 106 

Hatching- Turkey Fggs 186 

Head Lice 135 

Heart Trouble 122 

Helping the Hatch 158 

Hemorrhage of Oviduct 128 

Hen, Chemical Analysis of 31 

Hens, Rations for a Dozen 36 

Henpecked Husbands 174 

Heredity 29 

Hopper Feeding 59 140 

Houses — 

Laying Hens 9 

Growing Fowls 9 

Fresh Air or Open Front 9-12 

Mushroom 9-11 

First Requisites 11 

Colony 13 

Painting 14 

Town-Lot 74 

Housing- Chicks 162 

How Many on Two Acres 164 

How Many Toms 187 

How to Feed 26 

How to Make Nests 41 

Hump Themselves 135 



In General 161 

Incubator Chicks Dying 159 

Incubator Ducks 190 

Incubators 38-46 

Incubation — Testing Eggs 38 

Incubation -with Hens 41 

Increasing- Size of Eggs 166 

Indigestion 122-190 

Indigestion and Liver Complaint. .. 123 

Infertility 156 

Inflammation of Crop 123 

Influenza 124 

Insecticide 44 

Insects 68 

Intestinal Worms 137 

K 

Keep Turkeys and Chicks Separate. 183 

Keeping- Eggs for Setting 148 

Kerosene Emulsion 69-134 

L 

Lack of Oxygen 157 

Lame Hen 115 

Largest White Eggs 152 

Late Moult 155 

Lawn Clippings 142-146 



Laying Hens — Ration for 29 

Leg Weakness 

Lice 29-45-69-134-135- 

Limber Neck 

Little Turkeys Dying 

Liver Complaint 123 

Liver Complaint in Turkeys. ... 101 

Liver Enlarged 

Location of Incubator . 

Lumps on Turkey's Head . . . . 



35 

125 
138 
125 
187 
124 
188 
127 
47 
184 



M 

Male Bird oq 

Management of Poultry. .'..'..''. 163 

Mange i,u 

Marking Chicks '■■ 4^ 

Market Eggs 39 

Market Feeding 144 

Mash System ■.■.".341140 

Mating 27 

Mating and Breeding. ... 165 

Mating Brother and Sister ■■■^165 

Matmg Parent and Offopring 165 



Meat 



.139 



Mediterranean Class ' is. 

Methods of Feeding 04 

Millet Seed 145 

Milk 144-146 

Miscellaneous Questions and 

Answers 170-171 

^Iites 68-135 

Mixmg Foods 143 

Mope 193 

More About Turkeys ■.■.'.■.'. loo 

Moulting Season 76-154 

Mouths Red and Sore 117 

Moving Houses ' 1 gs 

Pumpkin Seeds 146 

Mushroom Houses '. .'.'.'.. .lei 

N 

Naked Chicks 126 

Nature's Way ' -^eliss 

Natural Incubation • • • ■- ^^ 

Necks Squirm ". 123 

Need a Tonic 1 §6 

Nervous Trouble .... .126 

Nests for Laying ' ' 29 

Nests for Setting 41 

Nothing in It 174 

Novel Nests .!!..! 153 

Number on Five Acres ! . . ! !l64 

O 

One Dozen Laying Hens — Ration for 36 

Operating Incubator 49 

Original Fowl, Feed and Habits.... 26 

Orpington Class 19 

Ovarian Tumor 128 

Over-Fat Hens 1 50 

Over-Heated 126 

Oviduct Hemorrhage 128 

P 

Painting Houses 14 

Paralyzed 129 

Pendulous Crop 129 

Peppers 141-145-148 

Pest of a Poultry Yard 69 

Phlegm in Throat 120 

Poison 124-139 

Polish Class 21 

Poor Layers 150 

Poor Hatches 156-159 

Proper Range 58 

Preparing to Hatch 47 

Preparing Show Birds Without 

Washing 94 

Preserving Eggs 84 

Proper Food 30 

Protein 33 

Ptomaine Poison 124-139 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Pulling- Feathers 122 

Purple Comb ■ 1 1 1. 

Q 

Quantity to Feed 141-143-144 

Questions and Answers^ 11^ 

Questions of Beginners 



167 



R 



Range 'oW VaWt n i 

Rations 35-140-141-1 

Rations During Moult 

Records, Keeping 

Rectum Eating l 

Red Worms • ■ • • ■■■■■■,■■} 

Red Pepper 123-141-145-1 

Requirements in Feeding.......... 

Rheumatism 116-129-1 

Roasters, Breeds for 

Roosting, Teaching ;.• • 

Roup '1-1 

Roupy Catarrh i 

Round Worms 1 

Run Around j 

Running Bowels 1 



Sample Rations 

Sand Fleas ; 1 

Scratching Pens 30 1 

Selection of Breed •. 

Selecting Eggs for Hatching 

Setting Hens 42-1 

Severe Climate 1 

Shipping Turkeys 1 

Shipping Young Chicks 1 

Show Birds — Preparing Them 

Sick Gobbler 1 

Sickness — Cause and Cure 1 

Skim Milk 1 

Sneeze 1 

Soft Shelled Eggs 1 

Sore Byes 1 

Sore Foot in Turkey 1 

Sore Throat llS-1 

Sorgh um Seeds 1 

Speck of Blood 1 

Spoiled Food 

Spray for Houses 1 

Sprouted Barley 143-1 

Sprouted Oats 1 

Starving Process — Moult 

Stick-Tight Fleas 1 

Stone Bruise 1 

Stopped Laying 1 

Straw for Pens 

Stuck-up Behind 

Sudden Death 1 

Summer Work 

Sunshine and Shade 

Swollen Feet 1 

Swell-Head 130-1 

Swelled Eges 1 

Symptoms of Grit Craving 



T 

Tape-Worm in Turkeys 185 

Teaching Chicks to Roose oi> 

Temperature, Hatching 49 

Testing Eggs 27-38-43-49 

Thermometer 39-158 

Throat Sore 118-131 

Ticks 68-136 

Toe Bating 120 

Tomatoes 142-183 

Tonic and Ration 147 

Town-Lot Fowls 73 

Trap Nest 61 

Tribulation 128 

Trouble With Incubator 160 

Tuberculosis 132 

Tumor 127-128 

Turkey Questions and Answers 183 

Turkeys 22-95 

Turkeys with Bad Cold 184 

Turkeys Dying 183 

Turkeys Have Chicken Pox 183 

Turkej's Lack Green Feed 185 

Turning Eggs..'. 4S 

Two Questions About Ducks 190 

U 

Ulcers 132 

"Up Against It" 175 



Value of Economy 80 

Varieties of Ducks 104 

Variety to Choose 15 

Variety of Houses 11 

Variety of Questions 179 

Ventilation in Houses 162 

Vertigo 132 

Vigor Necessary 26 

AV 

Wants to Start Right 167 

"Warts on Comb and Byes 121 

Water Glass 177 

Weight of Ducks at 10 Weeks 191 

Weights — Standard 18-22 

AVhat to Do and How 168 

Wheat 142-148 

When to Caponize 88 

"Which Breed and Specialty 175 

White Comb 133 

White Diarrhoea 55 

Whitewash for Houses 162 

Willing to Learn 163 

Wind in Crop . .133 

Worms 136-137 

Wrong Feeding of Ducks 189 



Yard Room 164 

Yellow .Blisters 121 



TKe Name The Place 

The Si^n 




534 South Main Street 



Los Angeles, Cal. 



We Carry in Stock Almost Everything 



Mrs. Basley recommends 



In Her $ 1 .00 Poultry Book 





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Send For Free Catalogue 



Henry Albers Co. 

53% So. Main Street* Los Angeles, Cal. 



Common Sense Poultry Houses 



The poultry business is one of the most fascinating as well as the 
most profitable, considering the amount of capital invested, in 
the West. The conditions here, however, differ so greatly to 
those in the East and other localities that the ways of treating 
the fowls must also be different. The needs of fowls do not 
vary, the resources of the places do and the success of the poultry 
raiser greatly depends upon adapting the conditions of the locality 
to the need of the fowls. 

Nothing is more important than the proper housing of chickens. 
The style of house a man builds for his birds will depend upon his 
means and inclinations. It is not always the most expensive house 
that gives the most eggs. In planning poultry houses and yards 
two or three principles should be firmly held in mind : First, the 
house must have a liberal supply of oxygen, which can only be 
supplied by perfect ventilation; secondly, it must be. free from 
draughts and be dry, and, thirdly, be easily accessible to the at- 
tendant not only for cleaning and spraying but to enable one to 
handle the fowls when on the perches. It should also be large 
enough to avoid crowding of the fowls. 

The laying hens should be kept in yards in permanent houses, 
easy of access, whilst the young and growing fowls will do best on 
free range with movable houses, called sometimes colony houses. 
These give the best results. 

After many years of experience here the writer has found that 
there are two classes of houses admirably adapted to the needs of 
the fowls and to this climate. These are called the open front or 
the "fresh air" house and the "mushroom" house. What is meant 
by an open front house, is a house enclosed on three sides and roof 
with one side open to the fresh air. This style house can be con- 




:iAM^HT<O0\A M.OV5E V5fD IN' CALITORMIA. 



'W-l^ 



lo MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

structed as a separate and movable house or as a continuous and 
scratching shed house. A plain open front house without a scratch- 
ing shed attached, is used in many places as a colony house where 
fowls have free range or where they are kept in an orchard. 

The "mushroom" house is built tight on four sides and roof, 
without any floor and is raised from the ground about twelve inches. 

Cuts of both of these styles of houses will serve to show their 
construction. 




Open Front House Without Seratohing Shed. 

A "fresh air" house that proved excellent and which I used for 
years on my ranch was one hundred and twenty feet long and ten 
feet wide. It was divided into six 'houses with scratching pens. I 
also 'had another which suited me well. It was eight feet wide and 
a 'hundred fet long; besides that I had twenty colony houses for 
the young and growing stock, and two brooder houses. 

The continuous house and scratching shed of which I give a 





"" f w ' "iflBiirlllliiii 






mm^ .; 



Vie-tv of Mrs. Basley's Continuou.s Fresh Air House and Scratching Shed. 

photograph and part of ground plan were built of flooring, tongued 
and grooved. 

The other house was of boards, battened, and the colony houses 
of resawed red wood or of shakes. Some were of rubberoid or 
building paper. 

Many of the artistic looking house plans which may be found in 
poultry books were planned by men who never owned a chicken, 



COAIMON SENSE POULTRY HOUSES 



and if built in this, or in any other climate, would be highly unsatis- 
factory. The plans here described have all been used either by 
myself or by successful poultry raisers. I have seen them all and 
can assuredly recommend them for use on the Pacific Coast. 

The houses I am describing are of the inexpensive kind, for so 
great is the variety of plans of houses designed for fowls that it 
would be impossible to mention them all in a short article. We will, 
therefore, consider only a few of the cheapest and most satisfactory 
small houses adapted to this climate. 

The first requisite in the house is pure air. To secure this the 



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ventilation must be at the bottom. Some people think that the 
bad air ascends, but this has been proved a mistake, — the foul gases 
descend; the pure air and the warm air are lighter and they rise 
and we want to keep them in, but if we have an opening for 
ventilation at the top or near the top of the house we lose the 
warmth. A loss of warmth at night in the winter means a loss of 
eggs, or more food is needed to supply this loss. The ventilation 
should either be at the bottom, or one entire side of the house 
should be left open. 

A Variety of Houses 

The accompanying rough little cut of a "mushroom" house will 
give some idea of the bottom ventilation. Houses like this were 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



used by a successful poultry man. He made a light frame five feet 
square and five feet high. This he covered with canvas and the 
roof he made of rubberoid roofing. He left a space below of ten or 
twelve inches. These "mushroom" houses were tipped over every 
day to be sunned or cleaned. I improved upon his plan by making 
a door of one whole side, for I wanted to be able to handle my fowls 
at night without tipping the house over. Perches should be placed 
about twelve inches above the open space, and in the case of heavy 
breeds a small ladder or run board should be placed for them to 
reach the perches easily when going to roost. The advantages of 
such a house are its lightness, and the free circulation of air without 
draughts on the fowls. These houses can be covered with matched 
lumber, shakes, canvas, burlap, rubberoid, or even common domestic 
muslin, which may be oiled or painted with crude petroleum. 

The open front house is admirably adapted to California climate. 
It is now meeting with favor even in the rigorous climate of the 




Hulbrook's Canvas Covered 3lii»hrooin House. 

East, where poultry raisers begin to realize the value of fresh air 
without draughts, if they want to have vigorous hens that will lay 
eggs in the winter time. I have been using the open front houses 
of various sizes for over twelve years and can assert that they are 
the only kind I ever want to use. Another style open front house 
that I have seen and like very much is fifteen feet by eleven feet six 
inches, and is seven feet high at the back and four feet at the open 
front. It is constructed of rubberoid or malthoid and is almost 
vermin proof. It is divided in the middle by chicken wire, so form- 
ing either one house or two as required. The roof is first covered 
with two-inch chicken wire to support the rubberoid. At the bottom 
of the walls next to the ground it is boarded up for about two feet 
all the way round ; this is to keep in the straw, for all the floor 
space of the house is used as a scratching pen. The sides and back 
above these boards are made of panels of rubberoid nailed to light 
frames without the chicken wire. These panels are taken down on 



COM.MON SENSE POULTRY HOUSES 



13 



all fine days to sun and air the house. The panels are kept in place 
by large wooden buttons. The front is entirely open or only closed 
by chicken wire except when it rains, then a burlap curtain is let 
down. The perches are near the back of the house about six inches 
above the dropping boards. The dropping boards are made of the 
rubberoid on frames. They are four feet wide and are placed on 
cleats two feet from the floor. This is a double house and each 
side will hold from twelve to twenty hens. The above description 
is of the Hoffman house pictured below. 

A cheap and substantial house can be made of two piano boxes. 
The simplest way to make such a house is as follows : Removing 
the backs of the piano cases, place the cases back to back thirty 
inches apart, on light sills. Use the boards which were the backs 
to fill up the- thirty inches on the sides and roof ; cover the roof 
with rubberoid or with oil cloth and you have a comfortable house, 
that will hold about a dozen or twenty hens, at a small cost. The 
front of the piano box house should either be hinged so it can 




ISFT. 



HoffnianVs Coiiiliiiiation Open Front House and Seratehing Pen. 

always be kept open except during the rain or it may be entirely 
dispensed with and a burlap curtain used to keep out the rain. The 
cost of this piano box house is about three dollars. 
Inexpensive Colony Houses' 

An inexpensive colony house is pictured on page 10. This house 
is of resawed redwood, four by six feet. It is light and easily moved. 
The front is on hinges and it is always kept open except during rain, 
and when it is closed it only comes down six inches below the 
perches, leaving an open space of about fifteen inches across the 
entire front. 

Still another style of colony house and one well adapted for use 
in an orchard or in the colony plan has been in use for some years 
on a large poultrv ranch in California. The house is eight by ten 
feet and two feet to the eaves; all the framework, including the 
runners, is of two bv three inch stuff, and the walls and ends are 



14 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



of one by twelve inch boards, shiplapped so as to avoid using bat- 
tens. The rafters are five feet four inches long, and three pairs 
are used ; a one by six inch strip is run all around the outside of the 
roof to form the eaves and also to make it tight; eight pieces of 
one by four are used for sheathing, and the sawed shakes are close 
so that there is no draught from that source ; the only opening is 
from the front which is open at all times. The houses do not 
require cleaning, for they are on runners, and are slid along about 
fifteen feet each time. Thus they are on fresh ground and much 
cleaner than one could do it ini any other manner. 

Painting the Houses 

For painting the houses I have found nothing better than the 
crude petroleum. I add to it for all my houses, red Venetian paint 
mixedwith a little kerosene or distillate oil, to thin it. This colors 
them a handsome chocolate. Creosote stain of a dark green in also 
a very good color, harmonizing well with the landscape, and both 
of these are preventive of mites and keep their color well for several 
years. A good whitewash also is quite suitable. The color is a 
matter of taste after all, and I am only describing the inexpensive 
methods I and others 'have successfully used. The whole plant, 
irrespective of size, should be planned symimetrically ; the houses 
made all alike and placed in line ; the large in one row and the 
smaller in another and all arranged so as to save as many steps 
for the care-taker as possible. A little forethought in this matter 
at the beginning may save many steps and dollars later on. 




Week's Portable Canvas Houses. 



What Variety to Choose 



"Poultry for profit" is the slogan. We are all looking more or 
less for the "almighty dollar." Every week, almost every day, I 
am appealed to for information as to which breed is the most profit- 
able. I can and often do tell which breed I have found the most 
profitable in the twenty years I have bred, but I cannot decide for 
another person what his or her likes or dislikes may be, nor can I 
tell what poultry will suit another's location or market. That, each 
one must decide for himself or herself, and then get the best of that 
breed to start with. 

A hint as to what to start with may help some of our readers. 
First of all study your market, decide whether it requires a brown 




'"^"^■"tsr^i. 



-y^^^ 



^^^^^^-'■■" WINNER op _ 
'^^'■i^/'i-^'/'i':- SPECIAL PRlZ.E-FoR 
C^^l-"^; •••■'• BEST SHAPED MALE 

■" '■,^C>«,,''..,.; A"^ -'=^W VoRK -'"ofc) 



j:^-^^ 
?^-^^-^~/^ 



Barred Plyliiouth Rook Cookerel 



l6 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

or a white egg and choose accordingly; secondly, decide what you 
will do with the surplus chickens, although this may seem like 
counting the chickens before they are hatched. Will you sell 
them as broilers and fryers or use them as roasters or capons? 
Thirdly, it is always a good plan to look ahead and choose a breed 
with a prospective value and demand — one of the breeds that may 
be rare in your neighborhood, or one of the newer breeds, such as 




Silver Ijsiced Wyandotte Hen. 

the Orpingtons. Columbian Wyandottes or Favorelles. Choose a 
breed for which there is likely to be a large demand for eggs for 
hatching and for breeding stock. Or else take one of the best old 
breeds that you know will make you money from the start. What- 
ever breed you decide upon get the best of that breed, and from a 
reliable breeder. 

Different Breeds 

A brief review of the different classes and breeds of domestic 
fowls may be of use to beginners. There are a large number of 



WHAT VARIETY TO CHOOSE 



17 



breeds in this country suitable to any branch of the business, with 
all colors of plumage and size. Some especially adapted to the 
farm, others to closer confinement, as on the city lots, and still 
others — like the beautiful little bantams — adapted to lawns and 
front yards. 

The American Class 
The American class consists of what are called the dual-purpose 
fowl. That is, they are good for market as well as excellent layers, 
so when their day of usefulness in the egg basket is over they can 
end their existence on the table. This class gives us the Barred, 
Bufif and W'hite Plymouth Rock, the Silver, Golden, White, Buff, 




Mrs. Baslej's White riyiiuditli Kook 'Snow Queen.' I.njed 225 Eggs in 9 Months 

Silver Pencilled, Black, and Columbian Wyandottes, the Single 
and Rose Comb Rhode Island Reds, the Buckeyes, the Black, 
White and Mottled Javas, and the American Dominique. Of the 
list no doubt the Barred Plymouth Rock is the best known and 
most popular; it may be said to lead the American class. Next to 
it in popularity is the White Plymouth Rock. This breed led in 
numbers at a late show in Madison Square Garden in New York, 
which is a sure indication of its popularity. The order of the rest 
might be given as follows: White Wyandotte, Rhode Island Reds, 
Buff Wyandotte, Buff Plymouth Rock, Silver Wyandotte, Partridge 
Wyandotte, Golden Wyandotte, Buckeyes, American Dominique, 
Black Java. 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



The standard weights of the above are as follows : All of the 
Plymouth Rocks, cock, 9j^ pounds; cockerel, 8 pounds; hens, 7^ 
pounds, and pullets, 6>4 pounds. All of the Wyandottes, cock, 8^^ 
pounds; cockerels, 7^/2 pounds ; hens, 6^^ pounds, and pullets, 5^^ 
pounds. The Rhode Island Reds, cock, 8^ pounds ; cockerel, 7^^ 
pounds; hen, 6^ pounds; pullet, 5 pounds. Buckeyes half a pound 
heavier except pullets. The Javas are of the same weight as the 
Plymouth Rocks, and the American Dominiques, cock, 8 pounds; 
cockerel, 7 pounds; hen, 6 pounds; pullet, 5 pounds. 

The Mediterranean Class 

In the Mediterranean class, we have the Single and Rose Comb 
Brown, Single and Rose Comb White, Black, Buff and Silver Duck- 
wing Leghorns; the Black and White Minorcas; the Blue Andalu- 
sians, the Black Spanish, and Mottled Anconas. 

The Mediterranean class is particularly well adapted to the cli- 




A Flock of A. H. Memmler's Columbian Wyandottes. 

mate of California, which greatly resembles that of their home in 
the old countries. 

In point of popularity and merit, the kinds might be classed as 
follows: White Leghorn, Brown Leghorn, Black Minorca, Blue 
Andalusian, Black Spanish, Rose Comb Brown Leghorn, Rose 
Comb White Leghorn, Buff Leghorn, White Minorca, Anconas, 
Silver Duckwing Leghorn and Black Leghorn. The Black Minorca, 
White Leghorn and Black Spanish give the largest sized eggs. 

All of the Mediterraneans have white shelled eggs. There is no, 
standard weight to the Leghorns. They are small birds, weighing 
3 or 4 pounds. Of the Black and White Minorcas, the cock weighs, 
9 pounds; cockerel, 7^ pounds; hen, 7^ pounds; pullets, 63^ 
pounds. The weights of the Andalusians are, cock, 6 pounds; cock- 
erel, 5 pounds ; hen, 5 pounds ; pullets, 4 pounds. 

The Black Spanish weights are, cock, 8 pounds ; cockered, 65^ 
pounds ; hens, 6^ pounds ; pullets, 5^ pounds. These lay an extra 
large handsome white-shelled egg. 



WHAT VARIETY TO CHOOSE 



19 



The Blue Andalusian has the unique distinction of wearing the 
national colors — red, white and blue — its plumage being blue, its 
face and eyes red and its ear-lobes white. 

The Asiatic Class 

The Asiatic class consists of the Light and Dark Brahmas, White 
and Black Langshans, the Buff, Partridge, White and Black Co- 
chins. In point of popularity, they would be about in this order: 
Light Brahmas, Black Langshans, Buff Cochins, Partridge Co- 
chins, Dark Brahmas, White Cochins, White Langshans and Black 
Cochins. The standard weights are : Light Brahmas, cock 12 
pounds, cockerel 10 pounds, hen 9^^ pounds, pullet 8 pounds. 

Weights for Dark Brahmas are: Cock 11 pounds, cockerel 9 




AVhite Plymouth Rooks. 

pounds, 'hen 85^ pounds, pullet 7 pounds ; Buff, Partridge and White 
Cochins, cock 11 pounds, cockerel 9 pounds, hem 8}^ pounds and 
pullet 7 pounds; Black and White Langshans, cock 10 pounds,' 
cockerel 8 pounds, hens 7 pounds and pullet 6 pounds. The eggs of 
all of the Asiatic class are a dark brown. 

The Ekiglish Class 

The English class is composed of the White, Silver-gray and 
Colored Dorkings, the Red Caps and. the Buff, Black, White, Span- 
gled and Jubilee Orpingtons in both single and rose combs. The 
White Dorking weighs as follows : Cock 7^^ pounds, cockerel 6^ 
pounds, hen 6 pounds, and pullet 5 pounds ; Silver-gray Dorkings, 
cock 8 pounds, cockerel 7 pounds, hen 6^ pounds and pullet 5}^ 
pounds; Colored Dorkings, cock 9 pounds, cockerel 8 pounds, hen 7 
pounds and pullet 6 pounds; Red Caps, cock 7^ pounds, cockerel 6 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 




Gooilacre's Black Orjiiujsrtoii Cockerel "Royal Arms." 

pounds, hen 6 pounds and pullet 5 pounds; Orpingtons, cock 10 
pounds, cockerel 8)4 pounds, hen 8 pounds and pullet 7 pounds. 

The French Class 

The French class is composed of the Houdans. Crevecoeurs, La- 
Fleche and Favorelles. The Houdans weigh, cock 7 pounds, cockerel 
6 pounds, hen 6 pounds and pullet 5 pounds ; the Crevecoeurs, cock 
8 pounds, cockerel 7 pounds, hen 7 pounds and pullet 6 pounds. 
The Crevecoeurs and La Fleche are favorites in France, but are 



WHAT VARIETY TO CHOOSE 21 

rarely found in this country, as they are not popular in the market 
here on account of their dark colored shanks. 

The Hamburg Class 

The Hamburg" class is composed of most excellent layers, of 
white eggs. They are the Silvered Spangled, Golden Spangled, 
Silver Penciled, Golden Penciled, White and Black Hamburgs and 
the Silver and Golden Campines. No weights are given for the 
Hamburgs and Campines. 



The Polish Class 

The Polish are more of a fancy fowl. They are the White Crested 
Black, Golden, Silver, White, Bearded Golden, Bearded Silver, 



1 

i imM 


mt 1 


^"T^m^r—mk^ 



H<»iid:in f'ook IlciMliii}; C. W . Ilossey's I'eiis. 

Bearded White and Buff Laced. They lay white eggs; no weights 
are given in the Standard for them 

The Game Class 

In the Game class, we have th« Black Breasted Red, Brown Red, 
Golden Duckwing, Silver Duckwing, Red Pyle, White, Black and 
Birchen Games, Cornish and White Indian Games, Black Sumatras 
and Black Breasted Red Malays. 

The standard gives no weight for Games, excepting for Indian 
Game, viz., cock 9 pounds, cockerel 7j/4 pounds, hen 6j^-4 pounds and 
pullet 5y2 pounds ; Malays, cock 9 pounds, cockerel 7 pounds, hen 
7 pounds and pullet 5 pounds. 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Turkeys 

The most popular variety of turkey is the Bronze, then comes 
the White Holland, another splendid variety. Among others we 
have the Black, Buff, Bourbon Red, Slate, Narragansett and Wild. 

The weights for Bronze are cock 36 pounds, yearling cock 33 
pounds, cockerel 25 pounds, hen 20 pounds and pullet 16 pounds; 
for White Holland, cock 26 pounds, cockerel 18 pounds, hen 16 
pounds, pullet 12 pounds. 

Ducks 

The Pekin is "The. American Duck" with its white plumage and 
heavily meated body. Their weight is as follows: Adult drake 8 
pounds, young drake 7 pounds, adult duck 7 pounds, young duck 
6 pounds. Another white variety, very popular in England, is the 




A Pair of Beautiful Bronze Turkey's. 

Aylesbury. Weight for adult drake 9 pounds, young drake 8 
pounds, adult duck 8 pounds, young duck 7 pounds. The colored 
Rouen have similar weights and plumage to the Wild Mallard, the 
drakes having bright green heads. Other popular varieties are the 
Indian Runners, both colored and white, called the Leghorn of 
the duck family, being rather small, very active and immense layers 
of fine white eggs Then there are the Buflf Orpington Ducks — 
becoming very popular ; the Blue Swedish, Black Cayuga, Colored 
and White Muscovy, Call and Black East India, these latter being 
more ornamental varieties. 

Geese 
Perhaps the easiest kept and noisiest of all our large variety of 
domestic fowl are geese, and where conditions are suitable they 



WHAT VARIETY TO CHOOSE 



23 



prove very profitable. The Toulouse, a large gray variety, and the 
White Embden, seem the most popular of the pure bred varieties, 
and the weights for either variety are, for adult gander 20 pounds, 
young gander 18 pounds, adult goose 18 pounds, young Toulouse 
goose 15 pounds and Embden young goose 16 pounds. Other va- 
rieties are the African, Brown and White Chinese, Canadian and 
Egyptian ; these are either used for ornamental purposes or for 
crossing. 

Selection of Breed 

Knowing the values and weights of the different standard breedi 
the beginner will be enabled to make his choice, and have no troubU 
in finding the proper selection. 

Supposing egg production is the principal object, the beginner 
will have to decide according to the demand of his nearest market. 
Boston requires brown eggs, San Francisco white eggs, while Los 
Angeles seems to be content with either. If you are living near 





liidian Runner Drake 



BuA Orpin^rton Ducks 



San Francisco one of the Mediterranean breeds will prove the most 
valuable to you. The Minio/cas, Black Spanish and some of the 
strains of White Leghorns lay the largest and finest looking eggs. 
One correspondent who asks for justice for the Minorcas says he 
has Minorca' hens which lay eggs weighing nearly three ounces, 
and there were Leghorn eggs on exhibition in a late poultry show 
which weighed five eggs to the pound, but these were from 
hens "bred to lay." The Brown Leghorns and Hamburgs give 
many eggs — white eggs also — but smaller, which is an objection in 
a good market. Should broilers be the object, we should choose 
the White Wyandottes or White Plymouth Rocks. These latter 
are exceptionally fine winter layers. For roasters and capons, the 
Light Brahmas or any of the Plymouth Rocks are the favorites. 
If two breeds are wanted, we should personally prefer the White 
Leghorns and White Plymouth Rocks. The White Plymouth 



24 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Rocks will give the winter eggs and the White Leghorns the spring 
and summer eggs in great abundance, although they may not lay as 
many eggs in the winter as the White Rocks. In the early spring 
the White Rock eggs can be set for early broilers and roasters, 
•w*hile the Leghorns are doing their heaviest laying, and in April 
and May the Leghorn eggs can be set for the following season's 
eggs. In this manner there will be a constant succession of eggs 
for market, and broilers and roasters in season. Always having 
something to sell means a regular income. Something to market 
at least once a week. A poultry and egg route and the reputation 
of having none but the choicest goods to ofifer is the secret of suc- 
cess. 




Silver Cainiiines. 



Eggs for Breeding 



Having chosen the hreed which suits us best, let us talk on how 
to get the most out of that breed, for I thiaik we are all agreed that 
if we keep poultry for profit, we want to make as much as we can 
out of it. Therefore, having got our fowls, we must treat them 
right. The natural instinct of a fowl is to make a nest for itself and 
raise a family of its own in the spring time. It never considers its 
owner's profit or loss, therefore to make it answer our purpose, to 
develop it into a money-maker for us, we must either change its 
nature or deceive it. We must let it imagine that it is the time of 
year for nest making and family raising. We must supply it with 
the conditions of springtime. Our own lives are artificial and the 
conditions surrounding our domestic hens are also artificial, but 
we must, if we want success, copy as far as possible Nature's ways 
with fowls and follow Nature's plans. 

In the spring not only do we want egg production, but we want 
good, strong fertility in our eggs. We want fertile eggs now, for 
•are w^e not prearranging to have plenty of vigorous pullets to lay 
those high-priced market eggs .next fall? Are we not anticipating 
sturdy cockerels to win prizes at next winter's shows, or to make 
toothsome frys or delicious roasts? 

Fertile eggs are now in order. How shall we get them ? First 
we must have vigorous and healthy parent birds; we usually have 
healthy birds in the spring of the year, for the moult is well over and 
the aihiients which prevail in the fall — colds, catarrh and sore 
throats, all classed as roup — have yielded to treatment, or the vic- 
tims are no more. The chickenpox, which also is a fall diseasCj 
has about disappeared, and the birds are in good condition. 




Eggrs for Breeding'. Packed Correctly for !Sliiiiiiieut. 



26 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

Vigor is Necessary 

Vigor is the first requisite for fertile eggs. To have vigor, the 
hens must have exercise ; every grain they eat sliould be scratched 
or dug out of the straw or litter in their scratching pen. A hen 
that is very fat — over-fat — will not have fertile eggs and will not 
have strong, sturdy chickens. It is neither kind nor wise to over- 
fatten your breeding hens, but they must be fed the proper food for 
fertility. How can we decide what food to feed for fertility? Let 
us interrogate Nature again. The wild bird, the Gallus Bankiva 
from which sprung all our domestic fowls, lays her eggs and raises 
her young only in the spring. She only has two broods of about 
thirteen eggs each, but those eggs are rarely infertile. What doe^ 
she eat? Principally insects and the tender green grasses or small 
leaves, not much grain, for the seeds have falleni and have begun 
to sprout and grow. 

During the winter Nature has supplied the birds with grains in 
plenty, so they have put on fat to withstand the cold ; but now there 
are only a few grains left and the fowls are becoming thinner, yet 
Nature does not starve them, only gradually changes the ration and 
gives them worms and larvae, insects of all kinds, for the insect life 
has also commenced to pulsate and develop ; the buds are burstingj 
too, and the tender green appears and beautiful spring is here, pro- 
viding all the green food they can eat. How about our captive 
hens? In our bare back yards, with only the rationi we choose to 
give them? Poor things ; they have a natural craving for the tender 
green, a wild desire for the succulent insect or animal food! See, 
how they will fight over or scramble for the meat that is thrown 
to them, or for the head of lettuce ! They try to tell us in their own 
way what they require to produce fertile eggs at this season of 
the year. 

How to Feed 

How shall we follow their teachings? Increase the amount ot 
their animal food and give the breeding fowls more green food. 
How shall we do this? Increase gradually whatever animal fooo 
we are now feeding until from 20 to 30 per cent of their daily food 
is animal food. The best animal food is fresh meat of some kind; 
the scraps and bones left over at the market ; this ground or chapped 
finely is the best I know of. Rabbits, squirrels, gophers, are all 
good fresh meat. If fresh meat cannot be obtained, you can get at 
the poultry supply houses granulated milk, dried blood, blood and 
bone, beef-scrap and other animal food. Tllie best green food is 
fresh-cut clover lawn clippings, green alfalfa, lettuce, cabbage and 
other vegetables. 

The Male Bird 

The male bird is considered as half the pen. The germ or seed of 
life of the future chicken is from the male. Be sure to have the 
male vigorous and healthy, and see to it that he gets sufficient food 
of the right quality. The male bird is often so gallant that he calls up 
his wives and they greedily eat all the best part of the food, choos- 
ing first the meat or animal part, which is the most necessary for 



EGGS FOR BREEDING 27 

fertility, and the husband and father of future chicks, on which so 
much depends, is half starved, becomes thin and light. Every male 
bird when being used to fertilize eggs should be fed extra, either 
in a pen or corner by himself, or out of your hand at least once 
a day. 

Mating 

In mating up the pens I have found the most satisfactory num- 
ber to mate is about eight or not over ten females of the American 
breeds to one male. From twelve to fifteen of the Leghorns or 
Mediterranean birds, and from six to eight of the Asiatic class to 
one male. Some breeders advocate using two male birds in one 
pen, alternating them day about, or three male birds for two pens, 
allowing one bird to rest every second or third day. I never did 
this, because I was pedigreeing my fowls, and I never found any 
necessity for it. 

Caring for Fertile Eggs 

Having the fertility assured, the next thing is to take care of the 
eggs from the time they are laid until incubationi begins. Eggs 
should be kept in a moderately cool, quiet place ; not in a draught. 
I always imitated Nature and turned the eggs, just as a hen would, 
every day, keeping them in a box either in the cellar or a large, 
dark, but airy, closet. Some people keep them in fillers with the 
little end down, but I prefer following Nature's ways and leaving 
them on their side. 

To Choose Eggs for Hatching 

To choose the eggs for hatching I use an egg tester or I roll up 
a copy of the Live Stock Tribune in the shape of a telescope, put- 
ting the egg at one end in the sun and my eye at the other end. If 
the egg shell is speckled or thin at one end, or has thin blotches on 
it or is misshapen in any way or if it feels chalky to the touch I 
reject that egg, relegating it to the kitchen, for these eggs will not 
hatch. I also reject very small eggs, as they are laid by pullets or 
by overfat hens and if they hatch the chickens will be weaklings. 
The very large eggs should also be rejected as they may have 
double yolks and these seldom hatch healthy chickens. Above all, 
never sell for hatching eggs those as described above. The best 
eggs are ;the egg-shaped eggs, with good, firm, smooth shells and 
not narrow waisted. 



@».J& 




Buff Cochin Hen. 




Views of RO.S.S <& Tate's Orpington Reser^'atiou. 



Eggs for Market 



The hen in her wild state lays about thirty eggs per year. The* 
farmer's average hen lays not over one hundred. On egg farms 
the average is iSO and some of the fowls of the "bred to lay" strains 
will average even more. 

There are 365 days in the year and I do not see why a pullet that 
is fully matured, that comes from an egg-laying strain, a pullet 
properly fed and cared for should not lay over 200 eggs per year ; 
in fact, I have had hens that will do even better than that. I will 
admit that a hen will not lay 200 eggs a year without constant and 
intelligent care, and the question confronting us is, Avill the addi- 
tional number of eggs pay for this care? Also how shall we give 
this care and secure these results? 

You hear of heredity and pedigree in cows, in horses, in dogs. 
Heredity is as important with hens as with any other stock. Here- 
dity has as much to do with the success of hens as the right hand- 
ling.. Heredity (or pedigree) and handling must go together. The 
two-hundred-egg hen must be "bred to lay." She must come from 
an egg producing family. No matter how scientifically a hen is 
fed, or how well housed, you cannot make an extra fine layer out of 
one whose parents for generations past have been poor layers. It is 
impossible to take a flock of mongrels and scrubs and get 200 eggs 
each a year from them, although good handling will greatly increase 
the yield of even mongrels. 

The different breeds require different handling but no matter 
what breed you have, there are three essentials to egg production — 
comfort, exercise and proper food. 

Comfort 

Under the head of comfort comes first of all cleanliness. A hen 
that has lice, or fleas, or mites, or ticks on her can not lay her full 
amount of eggs. You must help the hen in her efforts to make you 
money. Give her every encouragement to lay. Cleanliness every- 
where. A comfortable, enticing nest, rather dark, where she may 

12," 



'iiniiuii'i'i((iniiiu(iiur(HrM»mnr//iiimin\TMniini?T(nir7niDii:nunimQ^^ 




1 



mimammmmmmmmmmimmmmmitmmi 



u 



j 

2u 




'Seat to Keep HenM from E^atin^ IDgg;s. 
1. — Canvas curtain slightly turned back. 'I. — Curtain concealing nest. 

3. — Curtain thrown back to show construction. 4. — Curtain removed. 



30 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

stealthily deposit her precious egg. Renew the nice clean straw 
once a month. Do everything to coax the hens to lay. If trap- 
nests are used, there should be enough of them so that the hens 
will not be kept waiting, for by keeping a hen off the nest she will 
frequently retain her egg until the next day, and will soon learn to 
be a poor layer. Cleanliness means a clean, sweet-smelling roost- 
ing place, where she may sleep undisturbed by lice or mites. Just 
think for a moment how in the human family a fresh, clean bed in 
a quiet room will court slumber. I have passed the night in an 
Arab's tent in Africa that was infested with fieas, and my heart is 
full of sympathy for a hen that has to live in some of the mite- 
infested henneries I have seen in California. Under this head comes 
freedom from draughts. A draught in this country will give hu- 
man beings face ache, neuralgia, earache and a swelled face. It has 
exactly the same effect on hens. Influenza, swelled head, roup, al- 
ways or almost always commence from a draught (combined with 
lice). Comfort means also pure, fresh air without any draught, and 
pure, fresh water to drink. 

Exercise 

You know how in the human family exercise is recommended. 
Physical culture, gymnastics, Ralston exercises, Swedish move- 
ments, fencing, etc., and those who may be too feeble to exercise for 
themselves, pay others to rub, pound and knead or massage them to 
get the same effect. 

Exercise is as necessary for the hen as for the human being and 
more so, for the hen's exercise of scratching develops the egg pro- 
ducing organs and strengthens them, and hens which exercise lay 
many more eggs than lazy hens. If you have a vigorous scratcher 
among your hens you may be sure she is a good layer. 

Exercise a hen must have to develop the egg-making organs. 
She absolutely must scratch if she is to make a living for herself 
and you. I consider a scratcing pen as necessary for hens in con- 
finement as food. My scratching -pens were twelve or fifteen feet 
long and eight feet wide, but in small yards I have made very satis- 
factory little pens by nailing four boards six feet long together, 
forming a square. The boards should be twelve inches wide and 
the pen filled with wheat straw or alfalfa hay or any good litter. 
I do not like barley straw on account of the beards, which some- 
times run into the hen's eyes, nostrils or mouth and cause death. 
Foxtails, burr clover and wild oats are all dangerous on this ac- 
count. 

I feed all the grain scattered over the straw and my hens scratch 
and dig happily all day long. The straw or hay is soon broken 
into short pieces and fresh straw must be added about once a week 
and the whole cleaned out and used for mulching trees when the 
straw becomes dirty. It will depend upon the size of the pen and 
the number of hens using it. 

Proper Food 

What it is and how much to give. The scientists tell us that 
the proper food or the "balanced ration" is composed of one part 



EGGS FOR MARKET 



31 



of proteini to four parts of carbo-hydrates. Before discussing- this 
"balanced ration" let us interrogate Nature and find out how a hen 
balances her own ration. 

Let us take a hen as she comes in from foraging in the fields 
after a long day in summer. Let us kill her and examine her crop. 
What do we find? Grains of wheat, barley, corns according to 
where her rambles have led her ; bits of grass, clover and vege- 
tables ; some bugs, worms and grasshoppers ; here and there a bit 
of gravel and a lot of matter partially digested that we can not 
recognize. The first thing that impresses us is that the hen likes 
variety, and the second thing that this variety consists of animal 
food (bugs, worms, insects) grains and green food. This is the 
"balanced ration" balanced by the hen herself to suit her needs in 
the summer time when eggs are plentiful. If we want eggs in the 
winter we must, as far as possible, give the same conditions, the 
same variety of foods, with plenty of pure, fresh water, never for- 
getting that about seventy per cent of the egg is water. 

But to return to the "balanced ration." We know that a hen 




Beautiful AVhite Egg.-* Layed by A. H. Wheeler's Black Minorcas. 

requires a certain amount of food to keep her alive and thriving; 
above that the surplus goes either to making the egg inside her or 
to making fat. 

The hen is an egg-making machine but if you put into that ma- 
chine none of the elements of the egg, you can not expect the 
machine to turn out eggs. 

Therefore, the scientists analyzed the egg and not only that, but 
also analyzed the body of the hen with the feathers and discovered 
as follows : The very large number of different substances found in 
the hen may be grouped under four heads: 1, water; 2,. ash or 
mineral matter; 3, protein (or nitrogenous matter); 4, fat. The 
proportion of each of these groups alter with the condition of the 
hen. Water is the largest ingredient and amounts to from forty to 
sixty per cent of the weight of the bird. Ash or mineral matter 
forms from three to six per cent when the hen is not laying, and 
from six to ten per cent when laying. The groups called protein 
constitute from fifteen to thirty per cent of the weight. Fat seldom 
falls below six or rises above thirty per cent. 



32 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



The feathers are composed of protein .and ash, the ash being 
largely silicate of potash and lime. 

The analysis of a fresh egg shows: 1, water 67; 2, ash 12.2; 3, 
protein 12.4; and 4, fat 8.7. The shell is earthy matter, nearly all 
phosphate of lime. The white is nearly all albumen or protein 
and water, and the yolk protein, fat and water. 

It is interesting to compare the analysis of the hen and egg with 
some of our grains and poultry foods, but it would take more time 
than is permissible in a short talk. In all our grains are found more 
or less the elements of the egg, but they are not in the right or 
proper proportion for making the egg. There is usually too much' 
of the fattening element in the grains and not enough protein or 
nitrogeneous element, which forms the meat, muscle, bone and 
feather. This is the most valuable and most expensive part of the 
ration. 

In order to keep up the strength of the hen and have her produce 
the largest amount of eggs it has been found that for every pound 
of protein in the food, she must have four pounds of carbo hydrates. 
This will vary slightly according to the heat of the weather and the 
needs of the hen. 

I wish I could go more fully into this interesting and important 
subject but space forbids it. I would urge you to send a postal to 
the University of California at Berkeley, asking for the Farmer's 
Bulletin No. 164 on Poultry Feeding. This bulletin, by Professor 
Jaffa, is one of the most valuable bulletins ever published. It con- 
tains the analysis of the different grains, vegetables and meats and 
of most of the proprietary foods, besides formulas for the best 
rations. 




The Viotory Poultry Raueli of Goodacre Bros. 



Feeding in all its Phases 



Again I will say that the three essentials of egg production, the 
three essentials of profit in poultry keeping, the three essentials 
for vigor and health in fowls are, comfort, exercise and proper 
food. 

Let us consider (1) the proper food, (2) the methods of feeding 
it, and (3) recipes for a few tried balanced rations. 

Practical knowledge and skill in feeding can be acquired without 
the study of science. Feeding fowls for good results is a com- 
paratively simple matter. 

Requirements in Feeding 

The food which a fowl consumes has three chief functions to per- 
form : (1) To sustain life, promote life, repair waste and produce 
eggs ; (2) to keep the body warm ; (3) to furnish strength or energy 
which is expended in ever}^ movement. -The fowl is also able to 
store food, not needed at the time it is eaten, for future use ; this 
store ig chiefly in the form of fat which serves as a reserve supply 
of fuel. 

Food Elements 

To supply the three functions in the life of a fowl there are three 
principal food elements : Proteins, carbon-hydrates and fat ; all of 
these are contained in the different grains and foods used for 
poultry. 

(1) Proteins (or pretein) albuminous or nitrogenous matter. 
Protein is the nourishing matter, the principal tissue former, sup- 
plying material for bone, muscle, blood .feathers, eggs. Its latent 
energy can also be converted into heat and energy, but it is more 
costly for such purposes than the non-nitrogenous foods. 

(2) Carbo-hydrates, carbonaceous matter, starches and sugar. 
Carbo-hydrates form the bulk in nearly all foods and are the prin- 
cipal sources of heat and energy. 

(3) Fats are found in almost all foods. They furnish heat and 
energy in addition to the supply from the carbo-hydrates. Fat also 
enters largely into the composition of the yolk of the egg. 

All three food elements are necessary for life. The proper com- 
binations of these three is called the "balanced ration". It is, in 
other words, a complete ration containing in proper proportions 
the necessary food elements to promote (1) growth, including egg 
production, (2) warmth and (3) energy or strength. The needs 
of a fowl's system are not always the same ; it does not always 
need the different elements to be in the same proportions ; the ra- 
tion properly balanced (or suitable) for a growing chick would be 
unbalanced (unsuitable) for the mature hen. The food to be a 
balanced ration must be adapted to the present needs of the fowl- 



34 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

Methods of Feeding 

The question of how to feed and what to feed for the best results 
in egg-production, is the most difficult problem in poultry keeping, 
and has for some time been engaging the attention of the various 
Government Experiment Stations in this and other countries. The 
two successful systems in use at the present time are the Mash 
system and the Dry Feed system. 

The mash system is one m which a mash is fed once or twice a 
day. The foundation of the mash is bran, middlings, and corn meal 
or chops. It is mixed wet, raw, scalded or cooked. The dry feed 
system is when a dry mash is fed, consisting of the same ingredients 
as the wet mash. Dry feeding is used by many regularly and is 
becoming more popular every year. 

The advantages of a mash are that by its means the food ration 
for the whole day can be properly balanced ; the nutritive ratio 
varied and -controlled and the waste vegetables and table-leavings 
vitilized to the best advantage. 

In mash feeding the errors to be avoided are : Too concentrated 
a mash with too much meat or fat ; too light or bulky, that is, 




An Excellent Feed Hopper, Good Both for Young and Old FowLs. 

These hoppers are made 8 feet long- and the trough is 8 inches wide 
and 4 inches deep with a projecting strip on top i^-inch to keep the 
chicks from pulling- our the feed. The slate are 3 inches apart. 

composed principally of bran or hay ; too wet or sloppy mashes or 
sour or mouldy. Experience has shown that feeding mashes more 
than once a day has bad effects, producing indigestion in various 
forms. 

The 'advantages of the dry-feed system are: A saving of labor to 
the feeder, is lighter to handle and much easier to mix. It can be 
fed in the morning. The fowls are obliged to eat it slowly; they 
cannot swallow it in a few minutes. It will not freeze in cold 
weather nor become sour in hot weather and the fowls will not 
over-eat with the dry feed. 

The chief consideration in dry-feeding is that fowls require about 
three times as much water to drink as with the wet mash ; also 
unless the dry food is placed in hoppers or fed in boxes at least 
four inches deep, it is apt to be wasted. The two systems supply 
the requirement of the fowls in slightly different ways and both 
are used very successfully. 



FEEDING IN ALL ITS PHASES 35 

SAMPLE RATIONS 

T!he rations here given have been tested and proved excellent by 
some of the most successful poultry breeders in this country. 

Ration for Chicks Intended for Breeders 

First meal, when chicks are 36 hours old. — rolled or flake break- 
fast oats, dry ; give scattered on sand every three hours, then feed 
chick food. This is a number of small or broken dry grains which 
can be bought at the poultry supply houses. The use of hard .grain 
diet like chick feed, develops the digestive organs and keeps them 
healthy. The chick feed prepared by reliable firms is excellent. 
For those who prefer to mix their own chick feed, the following 
is a good recipe : Cracked wheat, 30 pounds ; steel-cut or rolled break- 
fast oats, 30 pounds; finely cracked corn, 15 pounds; millet, rice, 
pearl barley, rape seed, finely ground beefscraps or granulated milk, 
dried granulated bone, chick grit, ten pounds ; granulated char- 
coal, 5 pounds. In the chick feeds wheat, oats and corn are the 
staples, the most necessary part of the ration. Feed at six a. m. 
chick feed scattered in chaff; 9 a. m. rolled or stell-cut oats; 11 
a. m. green lettuce; 1 p. m. chick feed; 3 p. m. green: feed, lettuce, 
clover or potatoes chopped fine; 4:30 p. m. hard boiled eggs (4 for 
100 chicks, chopped shell and all, with the same amount of onions 
and twice the amount of bread crumbs or rolled oats or johnny- 
cake. One fountain of skim milk and one of clean water always 
before them and renewed three times a day. Very coarse sand and 
granulated charcoal should be always before them. 

Toward the end of the second week mix a little whole wheat, 
hulled oats and kafifir corn with the chick food, gradually increasing 
it until at the end of the sixth week they will be eating this entirely. 

Ration for Broilers 

For the first two weeks use the same feed as given for the breed- 
ers. Third week, 6 a. m., chick feed ; 9 a. m., mash, 1 part each of 
bran, cornmeal and rolled oats, and a little salt; mix with skim 
milk, making a crumbly dry feed in a small dish or trough, taking 
away all there is left in fifteen minutes; 11 a. m., lettuce or clover; 
1 p. m., rolled oats; 3 p. m., chopped raw potatoes; 4:30 p. m., mash 
same as in the morning. Fourth week, 6 a. m., chick feed; 9 a. m., 
mash; adding 5 per cent beefscraps or cracklings; 1 p. m., chopped 
potatoes; 4:30 p. m., mash, same as in the morning. Keep grit and 
charcoal always before them, with skim milk and pure water. Fin- 
ish off at six to eight weeks by gradually adding from five to ten 
per cent of cotton-seed meal and a little molasses with the mash. 

Ration for Laying Hens 

In order to keep up the strength of the hen and have her produce 
the largest amount of eggs it has been found that for every pound 
of protein in the food she must have four pounds of carbo-hydrates. 
Many instances may be cited in which the rations fed to laying hens 
differed greatly but have been productive of excellent results pro- 



36 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

vided they contain a sufficient quantity of digestible protein. The 
following rations have proven successful : 

DRY FOOD METHOD. By measure, 2 parts bran, 1 part 
alfalfa meal, 1 part corn meal. 1 part rolled oats; 1 part beef-scrap 
or granulated milk, a little pepper and salt. Keep this in a hopper 
or feed box. At noon green feed, evening grain ; wheat, kaffir corn 
(or cracked corn), hulled oats, equal parts, mixed and scattered in 
straw or iitter in the scratching pen. Fresh water constantly be- 
fore them. If they run- out of water the egg yield will stop. 

For One Dozen Hens 

Rations for one dozen breeding hens, American class, in confine- 
ment, for three days', rotation. 

Monday morning— -lOne pint and a half grain, wheat, cracked corn 
and hulled oats, equal parts mixed and scattered in straw or litter 
in scratching pen. Noon: Cut clover or lawn clippings. Evening: 
Mash, 1 pt. heavy bran; 1 qt. ground oats; 1 pt. corn meal; 1-3 of 
the whole cut clover or alfalfa meal ; 1 tablespoon each of salt and 
pulverized charcoal ; 3/2 pt. beef-scraps. 

Tuesday morning — 1^ pts. mixed grain, wheat and rolled barley. 
Noon : green feed, pumpkins or clover ; 1 pt. green cut bone. Even- 
ing: Mash, 1 pt. cooked vegetables and table scraps, 1 qt. bran, 1 pt. 
cornmeal, a little salt and pepper. 

Wednesday morning — IjA pt. mixed grain; wheat, hulled oats, 
kaffir corn. Noon: Cabbage or beets. Evening: Mash, 1 pt. peas 
or beans soaked over night, boiled with a little soda until soft; j^ pt. 
dried blood, or beef-scraps, 1-3 cut clover. If you cannot get beans 
cheaply, use potatoes or other vegetables. 

Follow the same system the remaining three days. 

Sunday, instead of the mash, scald three pints of rolled barley 
in the morning, cover and leave to steam. Feed in the evening in- 
stead of the mash ; this makes a pleasant change and saves work for 
the Sabbath. 

The reason for feeding the mash at night is to keep the hens busy 
scratching all day and so send them to roost with their crops full. 
There is danger of the American and Asiatic fowls becoming too 
fat and lazy without exercise if given the mash in the morning. 

Fattening Fowls 

Fowls to be fattened should be confined in small yards or in 
coops or crates, especially adapted for feeding. The object in keep- 
ing them in coofinement is to prevent the forming of muscle and 
sinew which would occur if allowed to run at liberty. 

The crate used for fattening fowls can be four or six feet long. 
Mine were composed of lath six feet long; the frame of the crate 
is 6 feet long, 18 inches wide and 18 inches high, divided into six 
little stalls or compartments. The frame is covered with lath, 
placed lengthwise on the bottom, back and top the width of one 
lath apart. The first lath on the bottom should be two inches from 
the back to allow the droppings to fall through, otherwise they 
would lodge on the lath at the back. The lath are placed up and 



FEEDING IN ALL ITS PHASES 



Zl 



down in the front, the spaces between them being two inches wide 
to enable the chickens to feed from the trough. \ "V" shaped 
trough is made to fit into two notches in cleats in front of each 
crate. The crate stands 15 inches from the ground; the droppings 
are received on sand or other absorbent material and removed daily. 
The coop is large enough to hold 12 or 18 young chicks (2 or 3 in a 
stall) or six full grown fowls. Fowls are fed three times a day all 
they will eat in 15 minutes. 

See cut of fattening crate. 

Formulas for fattening : 

(1) Equal parts of bran, cornmeal and oat meal (rolled break- 
fast oats) mixed with skim milk, fed three times a day. 

(2) Buckwheat flour, pulverized oats, cornmeal in ecjual parts, 
mixed thin with buttermilk. 

(3) Equal parts barley-meal, and oat-meal ,and a half part of 
corn-meal, mixed with buttermilk or skim milk. 

(4) A favorite French combination is two parts barley meal, 
one part corn meal, one part buckwheat flour. 

A little salt and coarse sand should be added to their food. Three 
weeks is the length of time to continue the feeding. Chickens do 
not seem to be able to stand the confinement for a ,greater length 
of time. The last week of the fattening process, five per cent of 
cotton seed meal and a little tallow may be added to any of the 
above formulas. 




Tbree-Cunipartineut Fattening Crsite. 



Testing Eggs for Incubation 

Success is what we all want to attain in what evef we undertake, 
and I earnestly hope that my practical talks on poultry may help 
others to make a success of it. 

"Success with the Japanese," wrote George Kennan, in one of 
his interesting articles during the war, "is not a matter of perhaps 
or somehow or other, nor does it depend upon the grace of a merci- 
ful God. It is carefully 'pre-arranged' by an intelligent forethought, 
a perfect system and an attention to details that I have never seen 
surpassed." 

Success in the poultry yard can be attained or "pre-arranged" in 
exactly the same manner. Failure in the chicken business (as in 
warfare) is due to lack of forethought, lack of system, and care- 
lessness with regard to details. Forethouht, is the studying up and 
thinking how to do a thing, thinking out beforehand the best way 
of doing it and arranging for it. 

The experiences of others by teaching us may save us not only 
dollars and cents but chagrin and disappointment. I spend a good 
deal of my time in visiting the ranches of some of my correspond- 
ents, either to hejp them out of difficulties, or to mate up their pens 
for them, or to start up their incubators, or to overhaul their brood- 
ers or plan their henneries, and in this way I become acquainted 
with the needs and difficulties of a number of amateurs or beginners 
in the poultry business. Some of the troubles of others may teach 
us what "not to do." 

"I wish you could tell me what is the matter," wrote one. "I had 
good luck last year but only half the fertile eggs hatched last time." 

I answered by -spending a day at her ranch. "What is the matter 
with your hatches?" said I, "and on what day did they come out?" 

"The first hatch this season came out on the twenty-second day," 
was her reply, "and as it was a day too late I decided to run the ma- 
chine half a degree higher than the directions order, and I suppose 
I got it too hot." 

"Did you have any crippled chickens in the hatch?" 

"Yes, in the last hatch there were a number of nice big chicks 
that could not stand up. Their legs sprawled out and I had to kill 
them." 

The Incubator 

Cripples usually come from over-heating the incubator, or from 
irregularity of heat. Poor or insufficient ventilation will also cause 
cripples. 

Now, what was the reason for these failures and what can others 
learn from them? After a careful examination of the incubator, 
which was a good one of the most approved make, I decided first 
that the incubator did not stand perfectly level, secondly that the 
thermometer was at fault. When the incubator is in the least de- 



TESTING EGGS FOR INCUBATION 39 

gree out of level the heat will go to the highest side, leaving the 
lowest possibly a degree or more too cold. The first thing to be 
learned from this lady's failure is never to start the incubator with- 
out being absolutely certain that it is perfectly level. The only 
way to do this is to use a carpenter's spirit level. Put it on top of 
the machine at each side and then cross-wise, and be sure that the 
bubble of air is at the proper spot. You may think that because it 
stood level last year it is most likely to be all rig'ht this year. That 
is leaving it to chance. One of the legs may 'have shrunk ever so 
little from the dry weather or swollen from the dampness of the 
room or the floor or ground may have changed ever so little at one 
corner or side without it being perceptible to the eye. It is much 
"better to be sure than sorry" so whether you are an expert or not, 
do not commence this season to hatch without testing your ma- 
chine with a spirit level. Do not trust to luck — "pre-arrange" and 
success will be yours. 

Test the Thermjometer 

Do not start the incubator this season without testing also the 
thermometer. Some friends of mine once bought a new incubator 
of standard make. The thermometer was guaranteed correct; two 
years seasoned. They had just received from Canada twenty dol- 
lars worth of very choice eggs, iand as they wanted to be sure of a 
good hatch from those prize eggs, they bought this new incubator, 
although they had a good one. Not an egg hatched ! They after- 
wards discovered that the guaranteed thermometer was two de- 
grees wrong. Do not trust to last year's testing. Thermometers 
vary, and it takes at least two years to season them. 

It is not difficult to test a thermometer, but to do so you must 
have one perfectly correct and accurate. This you can either bor- 
row from the doctor or from your druggist, or you can take one 
of your thermometers to the druggist and ask him to test it for you. 
Then having one that is accuate, take a bucket holding about two 
quarts of water, put warm water heated to about 105 degrees into 
ithe bucket and put your thermometers into it with the bulbs all at 
the same level. Keep the water well stirred, so the heat will be the 
same all over. Hold the thermometers in it for fifteen minutes, then 
read them and note the difference. If your ithermometer is half a 
degree too low, rriark on the incubator "Thermometer half degree 
too low; run incubator half degree lower than directed," or oppo- 
site, if the thermometer reads too high. If you buy a new thermo- 
meter, after testing it be sure to hang or place it in the correct posi- 
tion. The bulb must be on exactly the same level as the former 
thermometer, which belonged to the machine. A little difiference in 
height or in the position of the bulb of the thermometer may make 
a great difference in the heat on the egg tray. You cannot be too 
careful and particular about these small items. "Pre-arrangement" 
of these means success. 

How to Test the Eggs 

After supper when it was dark, we put the trays of beautiful fresh 
eggs on the dining room table, put the egg tester on the lamp, and 



40 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

then looked at each egg through the tester. Eggs were rejected 
that were chalky to the touch, or those that had light spots in them 
or freckled all over with clear places, or thin on the li'ttle end, or 
cracked, or crooked, or in any way misshaped. A few doubtful I 
left in, marking them "d" (these I subsequently heard did not 
hatch). It is much easier to detect the imperfect or unhatchable 
eggs by looking at them with the tester than by merely feeling 
them. It may be a little more trouble at the commencement but is 
a saving in labor all through the period of incubation and a lessen- 
ing in the expense of oil ; besides giving more room for fertile eggs 
and more chance of a good hatch, as the infertile eggs chill their 
fertile neighbors and draw from their vitality. Therefore do not 
put eggs into the incubator, or under hens, without carefully select- 
ing them. Poultry keeping is made up of little things, and can so 
easily be ruined by little things that I will add a word of warning. 
Do not hold the egg when testing it so close to the lamp that it 
will heat it. The tiny germ of life in the egg is very tender and 
may easily be killed. For this reason I made a home-made tester 
out of a cracker box. I cut a hole the size of half a dollar just op- 
posite the place where the flame of the lamp came when' I set it 
inside the box. In this way I did not overheat the egg. I also found 
this box very handy for testing eggs under setting hens. Ejg'gs, 
whether under hens or in incubators, should always be tested out. 
There are thousands of eggs lost or wasted every year from care- 
lessness in this matter. An egg which is infertile and is for a week 
either in an incubator ot under a hen is perfectly good for food. 
It is simply an egg that has been in a warm place for a week. 
There is no germ in it; there never has been life in it so there is no 
dead germ to decay. Infertile eggs keep fresh and sweet much 
longer than fertile eggs and those who are raising only eggs for 
market should keep no male birds in their flock and never have 
fertile eggs. 

Do not put eggs from different classes of fowls into the same 
incubator. Hens' eggs take twenty-one days to incubate, but if 
eggs from Leghorns (Mediterranean class) are placed in the same 
tray with Brahmas (Asiatic class) or with Plymouth Rocks (Ameri- 
can class) the Leghorns will be the first to hatch, sometimes as 
much as two days earlier, to the great detriment of the larger 
breed, which is slower in hatching. This comes not only from the 
earlier hatched chicks walking over the eggs, but also from the 
change in the atmosphere and temperature in the incubator at the 
time of hatching. At that time the air in the incubator is always 
heavily charged with moisture and the temperature rises from the 
activity of the chicks, and these two conditions will ruin the hatch 
of the slower breed. Experiments along these line that I have 
made have always given the same results. 



Natural Incubation 



The beginner may find it best to incubate with hens in prefer- 
ence to an incubator. The hen, having layed the egg, is the natural 
mother, has the mother instinct given by the Creator, and is certain- 
ly the one intended to hatch and brood the chickens. To the be- 
ginner in the chicken business there is less present outlay in a few 
setting- hens than- in installing even a small incubating and brood- 
ing plant under artificial methods. The trials of those who find 
setting hens troublesome are mostly due 'to their own inability, or 
their lack of patience with the hen. Hens must be treated with 
patience and gentleness, for in no way can a hen that has the "set- 
ting fever," as our grandmothers called it, be coerced against her 
will. 

How to Make Nests 

The nes't should be about fourteen inches square. Some breeders 
use boxes twelve by sixteen inches, but I prefer the square nests. 
If the nest is to be on an earth floor, rake the floor, then scoop a 
place about thirteen inches across in the form of a saucer ; firm the 
shape well with 'the hand, and when it is smooth and firm, take hay 
or short straw, or tobacco stems and firm that again in the proper 
shape, and the nest is made. Should it be necessary to have the 
nest in a box or on a board floor, take a clean box, have the front of 
the box just high enough to retain the nesting material; the backs 
and sides may be higher ; put several inches of fresh earth into the 




Nature's Way of Hatching. 



4^ MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

box, firm it with the han'd into a. saucer-shaped hollow, and be 
sure to pack the earth high into the corners, so there will be no pos- 
sibility of the eggs rolling into a corner and being chilled or lostt. 
The nests should be flat at the boittom, shaped like a saucer and 
not like a bowl. If too deep the eggs will roll together, sometimes 
pile up and get cracked or broken. 

When only a few hens are to be set, the nests can be placed in 
any convenient location where the hens may be quiet, comfortable, 
away from other fowls and in the shade. I have found that trap 
nests with two compartments very satisfactory, placed under a tree. 
I also have made sets of nests, givin'g each hen a nest and a small 
run, with a dish of water, a hopper with grit, corn and wheat always 
before her, shut off from all intruders. If hens are to be set in large 
numbers, a separate hennery in which from six to twenty hens can 
be set on the same day is the most convenient. The nests in this 
house or room should be placed with their backs tO' the wall and 
should face towards the center. Grit, corn, water and a dust bath 
for them to bathe in must be before them at all times. After a few 
days, if this hennery has a separate yard from the other fowls, the 
door of the house may be left open so the hens can go out of doors 
and take a dust bath in the open air, but the food, water and grit 
must be in the house in sight of all the hens. 

Setting the Hen 

The old fashioned recipe was, "Set a hen between sunset and sun- 
rise" for luck. In other words, set a hen in the dark. Hens are 
quieter and not so easily frightened after dark. Choose quiet, gen- 
tle, tame hens ; they make the best mothers. Handle them very 
gently. Put all the hens on the eggs in the same room the same 
evening, so they may all hatch out the same time. This is in order 
to keep the hens quiet during the hatch, as some whose eggs were 
not hatching the same day might become so excited they would 
leave their own nests and try to get 'to the newly hatched chicks 
when they heard the first peep. 

Dummy eggs should be placed under the hens, when a number of 
hens are set in the same room, for a few days, a few under each 
hen. The first night after dark set all the hens on dummy eggs. If 
some light is necessary, 'turn the dark side of the lantern toward 
hen. Have as dim a light as possible ; move the hens gently. They 
will soon settle down on the eggs. In th^ morning look in and if 
any hen appears refractory put her on the nest again and cover her 
with a box. Look in frequently for the first few days to see how 
they are doing, and you will rarely find more than two hens off and 
eating at the same time, as they are afraid of leaving their nests 
when others are off. Let the hens sit for two or three days, then 
put the good eggs gently in at night. THie way to do this is to re- 
move the hen gently, setting her on the floor, take out the dummy 
eggs and put the real eggs into the nest and gently replace the hen. 
Do not talk, act quickly, silently and swiftly, in a very dim light. 

From thirteen to fifteen eggs are all that should be placed under 
a hen. It is all she can warm properly, all she can turn and attend 



NATURAL INCUBATION 43 

to without the risk of breaking or cracking some. You will hatch 
more and stronger chicks by not placing too many under a hen. 

Keeping Records 

Above each nest, hanging on a nail, I place a card. On this card, 
legibly written is: (1) The date when set; (2) when due; (3) the 
hen's name or number; (4) name or parents' number on eggs; (5) 
number of eggs; (6) date of first test, number infertile or dead; (7) 
date of second test and remarks ; (8) hatch, number taken from 
nest, number not hatching or killed ; (9) toe marks of chicks. These 
cards can be preserved or copied into the diary of the ranch. They 
form a complete data of each hatch and a history of the hens as well 
as the chicks. 

Testing the Eggs 

Watch the hens rather closely for the first week, and note any 
that may be restless, nervous, cross to the others or stupid in not 
finding their way back to their own nests. These, when you test 
the eggs, you may be able to cull out and turn them back into the 
laying pen. It is always best to keep hens of pleasant disposition 
for mothers. 

The eggs should be tested about the seventh day. An expert can 
test them earlier, and white eggs or duck eggs show the germ as 
early as the fourth or fifth day. The removal of the infertile eggs 
gives those that are left a better chance of hatching. The infertile 
eggs or dead germs are colder than the living eggs and chill the lat- 
ter ; besides, the infertile egg has a market value and can be used in 
the kitchen or fed 'to the chicks. It is a waste to throw them away. 
Testing should not be neglected. There is no use in hens setting- 
on eggs that will not hatch. They had better be reset on fresh eggs 
or returned to the laying pen. 

Egg testers can be bought at the poultry suppl}^ houses, but a 
home-made egg tester I have used for years is only a box with the 
back knocked out and a hole in the top for ventilation. I put the 
lantern into it. Just opposite to the flame a hole about two inches 
square is cut in the box and a piece of a rubber boot leg tacked on. 
I drew a pencil line around a fifty-cent piece and cut that out with 
a pen knife, leaving the round hole for the light to shine through. 

The testing must be done in the dark. Set the egg tester with 
the lantern inside it on a box near the nest. Take the hen quietly 
off the nest, being careful to put your hands under her wings to 
make sure that you do not lift an egg or two with her. Place the 
hen very gently on the floor at one side. Do this so gently that the 
hen will not realize that she is ofif the nest. Take all the eggs from 
the nest, placing them either on the floor or in a basket; examine 
each egg and replace each fertile egg in the nest as you examine it; 
mark on the record card the number of infertile eggs, and gently 
replace the hen on the nest. Should any hen awake and appear 
nervous she can be put upon the nest and the eggs slipped one at 
a time under her as they are tested, but the former plan is prefer- 
able, being more quickly done, with less disturbance tO' the hen. 

The light shining through the egg, when held against the hole 



44 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

in the tester, shows the condition of the egg. Infertile eggs are clear. 
Fertile eggs have a shadow in them by the seventh day. The germ 
appears in some like a dark, irregular floating spot. Doubtful eggs 
should be marked with a D and given the benefit of the doubt, re- 
placing them in the nest. 

After taking out the infertile eggs, if there are many of them, you 
can reset the hens that have none or turn them back into the lay- 
ing pen, culling out the fractious or nervous hens. By doing this 
carefully at each test you will probably have good mothers when 
hatching time comes. Restless setters usually make indifferent 
mothers. Close observation is necessary for success in all lines of 
poultry culture, and especially with setting hens. 

The second test should be made in the same way O'n the four- 
teenth day. The eggs containing dead germs should be buried. 

Dusting the Hen 

A hen should be well dusted with insecticide the day she is set. 
To dust a hen the powder should be in a tin box with a perforated 
cover. An effective home-made peppering box can be made from a 
baking powder can with holes in the lid. Hold the hen by the legs, 
lay her on her side on a newspaper, raise the wing and sprinkle un- 
der it, then rub the powder well into the skin, especially round the 
vent. Work it into the soft feathers also around the neck. When 
one side is thoroughly powdered turn the hen over and do the other 
side. The powder that is spilled on the paper can be returned to 
the can. 

WHiile the hens are on the nests they should be dusted on the 
seventh and fourteenth day and two days before the hatch comes 
off, with buhach or with any good insecticide. I prefer those prin- 
cipally made with tobacco dust. 

When Hatching 

In the climate of California I have never found it necessary to 
moisten hens' eggs. In fact, the eggs that contain dead chicks 
show that they have not dried out enough. They did not require 
more moisture. There is a natural perspiration which comes from 
the hen, and this keeps the eggs moist enough. 

Should the eggs be chilled by the hen deserting the nest, do not 
throw them away. Put them under another hen as quickly as pos- 
sible. I have known of eggs being left for a whole day and yet 
hatching. Eggs under hens will stand much more cooling than in 
and incubator. Chilling seems to be less injurious during the sec- 
ond week of mcubation than at any other time. 

On the nineteenth day, two days before the hatch, I take out to 
the nest a bucket of warm water, temperature 103 degrees ; remov- 
ing the hen from the nest I put the eggs into the water. Those with 
a live chick in them immediately begin to bob or move as they float 
on the water, and I return them to the nest ; those that sink to the 
bottom or remain perfectly quiet have dead chicks in them and will 
not hatch, and I mark them with a pencil ; then replace the hen 
upon the damp eggs, feeling sure I will have a good hatch. 



NATURAL INCUBATION 45 

It is best to watch the hens pretty closely when the chicks are 
hatching-. Some hens get excited and nervous when they hear the 
chicks peeping, and in their restlessness crush the shell so that the 
chicks cannot turn themselves and they die in the shell. These 
nervous hens should, if possible, be removed and quieter hens 
put on. 

When chicks are hatching rapidly and the hens are nervous, it is 
best to remove the chicks as they dry off, taking them to the kitchen 
in a basket lined and covered with flannel. But if the hens are quiet 
it is best to leave the chicks with the mothers, only visiting the 
nests about twice during the hatch to take out the empty shells, 
lest they should slip over the yet unhatched eggs and so smother the 
chick. All eggs should be hatched by the end of the twenty-first 
day. 

Marking Chicks 

The offspring of the best, or pedigreed stock, can be marked so 
as to know them through life by having a small hole punched in 
one or more of the webs of the feet. This should be done as the 
chicks are removed from the nests. A marker or punch is sold at 
poultry supply houses for marking chicks. They should be marked 
the day they are hatched, as the web is then soft, does not bleed as 
much as later, and there is not as much risk of the other chicks 
pecking the toes as they would do when older. 

If the hens have been well cared for, properly dusted with a good 
insecticide during the three weeks of incubation, they will be per- 
fectly free of lice. They and the chicks must be kept free. There 
is not the difihculty in this that many imagine. Dusting the chick- 
ens and hens once a week is is all that is necessary. Some breeders 
put a little lard on the top of their heads and on their throats. This 
protects from the head lice. Others take a small brush (if the 
chicks are affected with head lice), and wash the little heads once a 
week with a lather of carbolic soap. They soon dry off in the sun 
or under the hen. 




White LieslK.rii Cssck. 



Artificial Incubation 



We are living in wonderful times, in the age of great inventions, 
and to succeed in any business, we must keep abreast if not ahead 
of our times. Not the least wonderful accomplishment of this 
wonder-working epoch has been the growth and advancement of 
the poultry industry, and the invention of the modern incubator, 
which made the development of the poultry business in this coun- 
try possible. 

In Egypt and China artificial incubation has been known and 
practiced for many centuries. In this country it is scarcely out of 
its infancy, still it would be impossible to estimate the value of the 
incubator to the poultry industry. It has made possible and profit- 
able the large poultry plants in this country. It has developed the 
broiler business; it has raised the hen to the position of the money 
maker. One incubator will do the work of ten to thirty hens and 
with better results. 

Must Approach Nature 

There have been many kinds of incubators invented, made and 
patented in the last twenty years. The difficulty is to choose which 
kind will do the work of hatching eggs best; that is, will bring out 
strong chicks with the least attention and the least expense . There 
are hot water machines and hot air machines; round incubators and 
square incubators. I have heard of incubators in this State, which 
are made like hot beds heated with stable manure. Some incuba- 
tors are heated with gas, 'but most of them by the heat of a lamp 
which burns coal-oil. The best incubator is the one that comes 
nearest to imitating the natural process of incubation by a hen, for 
undoubtedly Nature is our great teacher in this matter. 

The two favorite makes of incubators on the market now are the 
hot water incubators and the incubators which bring warmed air 
into the egg chamber. The latter are called hot-air incubators. The 
difference between them is that the hot water machines heat the 
egg chambers by radiation, while the hot-air machine brings warm 
air into the incubator. 

In the machines where the heat is radiated from the metal sur- 
face of pipes or tanks the temperature at the underside of the eggs, 
away from the heat, is several degrees cooler than at the upper 
side of the eggs. Top heat by radiation is supposed to resemble 
the heat from the body of the hen. 

In the hot-air incubators, the egg chamber is heated by air that 
is warmed outside of the egg chamber to a proper heat and is then 
forced into the machines by suction or circlation and diffused into 
the egg chamber. This way gives a constant supply of warmed 
fresh air, as pure and fresh as the atmosphere outside of the incu- 
bator. These hot-air machines rarely require any moisture to be 
added, as there is usually sufficient moisture held in suspension in 



ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 47 

the atmosphere, which is being constantly introduced into the egg 
chamber. 

It pays to get the best, and by inquiring at the large poultry 
plants in the neighborhood, information can easily be obtained 
as to the most popular machine in use in that locality. 

It is wiser to buy a machine than to attempt to make one. Good 
incubators are now sold at so low a price that it does not pay to 
risk the loss of eggs in experimenting on a home-made machine. 

Location o£ Incubator 

The incubator should be located in a well ventilated room or 
cellar that is dry and not subject to great variations of temperature. 

Preparing to Hatch 

The first thing to do is to set the machine perfecth^ level, using a 
spirit level to make sure of this, for if the machine is not level the 
heat will go to the higher side, the temperature will be uneven and 
although it may be correct where the thermometer hangs, in the 
middle, the upper side will be too hot and' the lower too cold. It 
is most important to have the incubator stand perfectly level. 

Let the incubator run for thirty-six hours before putting in the 
eggs. This is to make sure that the machine is thoroughly warmed 
and that it is running steadily at the proper heat. It may take 
twelve hours before the eggs gradually warm through, and the 
thermometer again shows the desired temperature. During this 
time the regulator must not be altered. Touching the screw may 
prove fatal to the whole hatch. So wait patiently until the desired 
heat is again present. 

Selecting the Eggs 

Eggs for hatching should always be carefully selected. The 
fresher they are the better. Eggs hatch after being kept a month, 
but the little germ or seed of life gradually grows weaker and 
weaker, and at last has not the strength to develop into a fine, 
healthy chick, and may die in the shell, if the egg is kept too long. 
Ten days or two weeks is better than any older. 

The eggs should come from vigorous, healthy and well-fed stock. 
Much depends upon the feeding of the breeders, especially the male 
bird. They should have plenty of vegetables and green food, as 
well as animal food and those grains which contain the bone and 
muscle forming elements. Eggs with imperfect shells should be 
rejected ; also those with rough or chalky shells, and with thin spots. 
The eggs should be of medium size, neither too large nor too small, 
as the large eggs may have double yolks, which rarely hatch. Small 
eggs denote inferiority and are either pullet eggs or eggs from fat 
hens, or hens exhausted from having layed a long time. 

Eggs of One Class 

The eggs should be of one breed or class. It takes twenty-one 
days to hatch all hen eggs, but if the eggs from Leghorns are 
placed in the same tray as the Brahmas, the Leghorns will be the 
first hatched, sometimes as much as two days sooner, to the great 



48 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

detriment and loss of the others, which are slower in hatching. 
This is probably caused by the change in the atmosphere and change 
in the incubator at the time of hatching. The air is heavily charged 
with moisture, and the temperature always rises during a hatch 
from the activity of the chicks, and it is exceedingly difficult to 
regulate the temperature when the incubator is full of chicks in all 
stages of hatching. The rise of temperature does not hurt the 
chicks that are just breaking out of the shell, but if it takes place 
two days too soon it will ruin the hatch of the heavier and slower 
breeds. Experiments that I have made along these lines have al- 
ways given the same results. 

Turning the Eggs 

The eggs must be left for forty-eight hours after being placed in 
the incubator before being turned. After that, they should be 
turned twice a day, or oftener. In this we should imitate the hen, 
for she not only turns her eggs constantly, but always shifts their 
position, pushing those that are on the outside into the center of 
the nest. It is really more important that the eggs be moved or 
shifted from their position or location in the tray, than merely 
turned, as it shifts the locations of the eggs in regard to weak 
germs or infertile eggs. 

If the eggs are not turned during the early stages of incubation, 
many of the germs will dry fast to the shell and die, and the egg 
will be lost. When the egg is not turned during the latter part of 
incubation, the embryo does not develop properly, has little chance 
of hatching or may prove a cripple. 

The turning and moving of the eggs gives exercise tcr the em- 
bryo; it is a species of gymnastics for strengthening the chick. The 
first forty-eight hours and the last forty-eight hours the eggs must 
not be turned. 

Cooling the Eggs 

Cooling the eggs I consider an important matter in our American 
incubators. The first week, following the hen's example, the eggs 
require but little cooling beyond the time it takes to turn them. 
The second week, as soon as the eggs are turned replace them in 
the machine and leave the door open for five minutes, after this 
increase the time, a minute or two each day till at the end the eggs 
are being aired or cooled fifteen or twenty minutes. 

Cooling the eggs helps to make the shell brittle, so that the chick 
at the proper time can break its way out. Cooling the eggs con- 
tracts the shell and heating it up again expands it and this con- 
traction and expansion gives the 'shell its proper brittleness. As 
the eggs warm up again, an almost imperceptible moisture comes 
over them, which takes the place of the perspiration of the hen, and 
obviates the necessity of sprinkling or dampening the eggs. So in 
our incubators it is necessary to cool the eggs. If this has been 
done properly the chicks will be strong and vigorous and few will 
die in the shell. 



ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 49 

Testing the Eggs 

All sterile eggs and dead germs should be tested out. Egg 
testers are sold with all incubators and very little practice will en- 
able even a beginner to detect the sterile eggs and dead germs. 
Infertile eggs will be of a clear, uniform color throughout, except 
a slight darkening where the yolk lies. In the fertile eggs will be 
seen a small dark spot, and in a white egg the blood vessels can be 
seen branching out from it. Eggs should be tested about the sev- 
enth day. A second test for removing the dead germs should be 
made on the fifteenth day, they being easily detected at that time. 
The chicks in fertile eggs will be seen to fill the shell nearly, except 
a small space at the small end, and the air space at the large end. 
All eggs containing dead germs should be removed from the ma- 
chine and buried. On the eighteenth day the chicks fill the entire 
shell except the air cell and the egg will be quite opaque, as if near- 
ly full of ink. To become accurate in egg testing requires practice 
and a brilliant light. 

Operating the Incubator 

Follow exactly the directions given with whatever incubator you 
may purchase. The makers of the incubators are anxious for you 
to succeed and have good hatches ; it is to t^heir interest for you 
to be successful. They have spent time and money in perfecting 
and understand how to manage their own machines better than any 
one else. 

On the morning of the nineteenth day the eggs should be turned 
for the last time. The machine should then be closed and kept 
closed until the hatch is over. Opening the door during the process 
of hatching may spoil or seriously injure the hatch, as by such 
action a large amount of heat and moisture escapes and cold air is 
admitted. This dries up the lining skin of the eggs that are pipped 
and checks or prevents their hatching. It also chills the half- 
hatched or newly hatched chicks and is detrimental to all of them. 
When the chicks are coming out lively the temperature will rise ; 
should it go above 105 degrees the lamp may be turned down a 
little. 

Leave the chicks in the machine without opening it until they 
are thoroughly dry. The chicks should not be moved from the in- 
cubator until the twenty-second day and should not be fed until 
twenty- four hours after hatching. 

General Remarks 

Should the hatch not come ofif until after the twenty-first day, it 
shows that the heat has been insufficient; if it comes ofif earlier the 
heat during part of the time has been too high. Too low a tem- 
perature will give a weak hatch, many chickens will die in the shell, 
and those that are hatched will be weakly and never amount to any- 
thing. Too high temperature at the commencement of incubation 
will cook and kill the germ. One hundred and six degrees is dan- 
ger point up to the tenth day. Germs which died between the first 
and second testing are frequently the result of overheating. Too 



50 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



high a temperature during the last week will so weaken the bowels 
of the chicks that they will be unable to- assimilate the yolk of the 
egg. The yolk of the egg is Nature's perfect nourishment, which . 
feeds and nourishes the embryo. 

During the last day of the chick's life in the shell the part of the 
yolk which has not been absorbed is drawn up into the chick. This 
forms its food and nourishment for about three days. But should 
the egg be over-heated, this yolk hardens and even if drawn into 
the chick, it becomes tough, the chicken's bowels are weakened by 
the over-heating, the yolk remains unassimilated, like a piece of rub- 
ber, blood poisoning ensues and the chick dies some time between 
the first and tenth day of its life. Chilling the eggs has almost the 
same effect ; it weakens the bowels, hardens the yolk and eventually 
kills the chick. 




Weaniug Coop for Chicks. 



Care of Brooder Chicks 



Tlie hatching of chicks is but half the battle, for eggs from good 
vigorous parents will hatch with but little trouble if a good standard 
incubator is used and if the directions with it are followed. How 
about the raising of the chicks after they are hatched? 

The poultry papers agree that there is not a subject pertaining 
to poultry culture that needs more thorough, painstaking investiga- 
tion and discussion than the care of the chicks, and it is said that 
not more than fifty per cent of the chicks that are hatched the coun- 
try over, reach maturity or a marketable age. 

What are the principal causes of mortality among chicks ; how 
can we combat them and what are the essentials in the successful 
raising of chicks? 

There are numberless causes for the death we deplore — among 
these are diarrhoea, bowel trouble, lice, improper feeding, impure 
water, over heating or chilling and exposure to the elements. 

Feeling sure that the mortality in chicks is caused in a majority 
of cases by the carelessness or ignorance of the care taker, let us 
discuss this subject and glean from the best authorities some ideas 
about it as far as we may in one short article. 

Expert Opinion 

Prof. James E. Rice, of Cornell University, has for several years 
been making a careful study of the cause and cure — or prevention 
— of the numerous diseases that cause the death of hundreds of 
thousands of chicks yearly, and his investigations have led him to 
believe that one great cause of mortality is the failure on the paft 
of the digestive organs of the chicks to properly digest the yolk of 
the egg remaining in their bodies at the time of hatching. 

Mr. Rice says : "If we can solve this one problem — the cause of 
the anaemic condition of chicks that follows this failure to absorb 
the yolk of the egg- — more money will be saved in one year to the 




A Bunch of Future Prize Winner.s. 



S2 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

farmers and poultry raisers of New York state than it costs to run 
the State Agricultural College for ten years." 

Mr. Rice says he is confident that environment has little, if any- 
thing, to do with the disease, as has been generally supposed. When 
he first began his investigations, this theory was worked upon and 
followed up, but as the investigation progressed it was found that 
the same conditions existed under almost any and all circumstances 
— in dry places, in damp places, in light brooding houses and in 
dark brooding houses ; in fact he found no conditions under which 
this trouble did not exist. Mr. Rice is confident, however, that the 
investigations being conducted will ultimately solve the problem. 

Until this problem is solved we shall have to be content with the 
theories oi the different breeders and hatchers, and as one I feel 
confident from my own experiments and experiences that the deaths 
from diarrhoea, or in fact almost all the deaths of brooder chicks 
before three weeks of age, come from faulty incubation. The tem- 
perature has been either too hot or too cold, usually the former, or 
the ventilation has been at fault, or the chicks have been chilled in 
carrying them to the brooder, or fed too soon, before the digestive 
organs were ready to digest the food. 

Elbow Room Needed 

Mr. Hunter, the veteran poultry man says : "With incubator 
chicks raised in brooders, elbow room seems to be a most important 
factor, and want of elbow room is one cause of the great mortality 
in brooder chicks." 

It is quite natural to suppose that a brooder which is three feet 
square is abundant room for seventy-five or a hundred chicks, and 
indeed it is for the chicks as they come out of the iuicubator, and 
if we do not want them to grow it might be all right to crowd them 
into the brooder, but these chicks will be almost twice as large at 
three weeks old as when they are hatched and will require twice 
as much room or will suft'er for it. 

Fifty chickens are as many as should be put into any brooder. 
To increase the number beyond that point will induce crowding, 
which kills some and stunts others, and will prevent the quick, 
healthy growth that is necessary for all young animals. Ample 
brooder room is the first and chief requisite for the health and com- 
fort of the chicks. The next requisite is oxygen. In other words, 
plenty of fresh, warm air, but no drafts in the brooder. Here is 
one of the great faults with many brooders, as for example the hot 
water pipe brooders in use in many brooder houses. Those hot 
water pipes merely heat the air that is already within the hovers, 
which air is practically confined to the hovers by the felt curtain 
in front, provided to keep in the heat. It does that, but it also en- 
closes the air, which the chicks have to breathe over and over again. 
This defect in my brooders cost me the lives of many chicks before 
I discovered the cause. A current of warmed fresh air supplied 
under the hovers overcame this difficulty, when I substituted the 
hot air plan. 



CARE OF BROODER CHICKS 53 

Comfort Essential 

The brooder should be heated for at least twelve hours before the 
chicks are put into it. I always keep a thermometer in the brooder, 
and have it at 95 degrees when they are first removed from the in- 
cubator. They should be carried to the brooder in a basket lined 
and covered with flannel, great care being taken that they be not 
chilled on the way. I am sure that many chicks lose their lives by 
being chilled on this their first journey. The abrupt change from 
the warm incubator to the outside air, which is thirty or forty de- 
grees colder, is sufficient to chill the chick. 

A chill will harden the yolk of the egg, which is drawn up into 
the chick the last day of its stay in the egg shell. You know that 
the yolk of the egg forms the nourishment for the chick inside the 
shell. The last day of its life in the shell all that remains of the 
yolk, about one-fourth of it, is drawn, up into the chicken through 
the navel. If the chick is vigorous the yolk should be assimilated 
or digested in about three days. But if the chick is chilled or over- 
heated, it so weakens the the bowels that they cannot digest the 
yolk or absorb it, and the yolk hardens or toughens, becomes al- 
most like rubber; then it can never be assimilated, blood poisoning 
ensues and the chick's life ends. 

Chicks should not be fed for from thirty-six to forty-eight hours 
after they come out of the shell, because, first,. they do not require 
any food, as the yolk inside them takes nearly three days to become 
absorbed or digested ; and, secondly, if they are fed too soon (that 
is, before the yolk is digested), the effort of digesting the new 
food draws the nervous energy or gastric juices away from the part 
containing the yolk, up to the crop and gizzard, and the yolk either 
does not digest at all or digests so slowly that it brings on bowel 
trouble, which at such an early age stunts the growth, if it does 
not kill the chick. In a chick that is fed too early in, life the yolk 
will take, or may take ten days to digest. You ask how I know 
this. "By sad experience and post mortem examinations," is my 
reply. 

Tlie brooder being warmed to a temperature of 95 degrees undei 
the hover, the floor should be covered with coarse sharp sand, the 
chicks carried carefully to the brooder, after remaining thirty-six 
to forty-eight hours in the incubator. 

Feed Carefully 

The first few hours in the brooder they require no food but the 
sand to eat and water to drink. The sand supplies the little gizzards 
with the necessary teeth or little grindstones, so that they are ready 
to commence work when the food comes. Water I place in a drink- 
ing fountain, so they cannot get into it and wet themselves. I give 
them water from the first. I know some people do not, but it has 
succeeded well with my chicks. At about four o'clock they have 
the first meal. I scatter rolled breakfast oats on the sand. The 
white flakes quickly attract their attention and they pick them up. 
r also give them a fountain of fresh water and one of sweet 
skimmed milk. It is surprising to see how quickly they learn to 



54 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

eat and drink. In the evening I look in upon them and am pleased 
when I see them spread over the hover floor, as it indicates that 
they are comfortably w^arm and will not crowd or huddle during 
the night. The first thing in the morning I give them some more 
rolled oats and some "chick feed". The "chick feed" I buy at the 
poultry supply stores. It is composed of a variety of seeds or 
grains, with a little charcoal, dried blood, or beef scraps and grit. 
Sometimes I make m.y own chick feed by mixing cracked wheat, 
kafifir corn, millet, steel cut oats, pearl barley and rolled oats to- 
gether, adding charcoal and dried beef scraps. I put more wheat 
and more oats into this mixture than any of the other grains. The 
chick feed that I buy has in addition: some other seeds, such as 
rape or mustard, canary seed, hemp, etc. I buy chick feed to save 
myself the trouble of mixing. Chick feed and rolled oats is their 
main feed until they are six or eight weeks of age. I feed them five 
times a day at first, and I always leave a little feed trough or hop- 
per of chick feed where they can get it. I know this is contrary to 
the advice of many, but I found the weaker ones did not get the 
proper amount when all rushed for the food, and also it was a great 
comfort to me, if anything detainicd me beyond the usual feeding 
time, to know they had food before them. Also when fed at the 
usual hour they were not so ravenously hungry; they would not 
overload their little stomachs. 

Their morning meal at about six in the morning, consists of rolled 
or flake breakfast oats, next green feed, then chick feed, then 
rolled oats, green feed, and the last feed after they are a few 
days old is hard boiled eggs (two for every fifty chicks), chopped 
fine, shell and all, mixed with dry bread crumbs or cracker 
crumbs, and an onion chopped very fine. I mix all together, adding 
a little pepper and salt. If I have no bread crumbs, I add johnny 
cake or rolled oats to the onion and eggs. I always send them to 
bed with their little crops full. 

As They Grow Older 

I keep a thermometer under the hover in the brooder and lower 
the temperature one degree a day until it is down to sixty-five de- 
grees. After the chicks are six weeks old, unless the weather is 
unusually cold, they require no heat. For green feed they seem 
to prefer lettuce to anything else. Finely cut clover or alfalfa is 
excellent. The lettuce I cut up very fine at first, but in a few days 
they learn to tear it up, and a lettuce suspended on a string or even 
thrown on the ground, gives them exercise and amusement as well 
as food. 

In the playroom, where the chicks are fed, the floor is covered 
with chafif. If I cannot get from the mill real chafif I cut up hay in 
the clover cutter, either wheat hay or alfalfa hay, to give them 
something to scratch in, and I throw a handful of chick feed into it 
for them to have something to reward their eftorts. 

The alfalfa hay or chaff keeps them busy and exercising and this 
broadens their backs and increases the size and vigor of the egg 
making organs which are already commencing to grow and which 



WHITE DIARRHOEA IN BROODER CHICKS 55 

we must develop from the very first if we want to increase the egg 
output. The chaff, or preferably the alfalfa hay chopped short, also 
f-onceals their little feet from their active and sometimes mis- 
chievous brothers and stops them from pecking the feet and draw- 
ing blood, which tastes so good that they will actually turn canni- 
bal and tear out and eat the bowels, sometimes causing great loss. 
This is always prevented by keeping the chicks busy scratching 
in deep chaff. 

They have fresh water each time they are fed. The first meal 
is at about six in the morning, and if I fear that I may be later 
tiian that, I put fresh feed and water in their playroom over night, 
so that the hungry babies may not be kept waiting. They come 
out at daybreak, eat a little, and sometimes drink, and then go back 
and take another nap. 

The brooders must be cleaned twice a week the first week, three 
times a week afterwards, and every day when the chicks grow 
larger. The chicks should be dusted with insect powder about once 
a week. To do this I have a tin box (a baking powder can with a 
perforated .cover), put insect powder into it and after dark raise 
the hover and sprinkle the powder liberally over the chicks. This 
will usually keep them free from lice. 



"WHITE DIARRHOEA" IN BROODER CHICKS 



This is a disease which rarely attacks chickens hatched and 
raised by hens, and therefore it must be caused either by faulty 
incubators or wrong "mothering." 

We all know that at times quite a number of chicks in a brooder 
will be "stuck up behind" as it is sometimes called; how they run 
about with their shoulders up, looking wizened and old ; how they 
try to huddle near the warmth and finally give up the hopeless 
struggle and die. 

"I think my chicks are taking some disease and dying from an 
epidemic," said a lady, who, though a novice with incubators and 
brooders, was an old and most successful poultry woman with hens. 
These chicks had been overheated in the incubator I discovered, two 
days after hatching. 

Another friend, a very cleaver surgeon, told me one chilly night 
his incubator lamp went out and all the eggs got stone cold. His 
wife coula not bear to think of losing all those nice eggs after hav- 
ing watched them for nearly three weeks, so she advised lighting 
up again in hopes of saving some. This they did and were rewarded 
with fifty nice, lively chicks, but in a few days they commenced to 
die; they were "stuck up behind" or they shivered and seemed quite 
thirsty, and at last, when only fifteen were left, he made some post 
mortem examinations and he found the yolk of the egg, which is 
drawn up into the bowel cavity the last day of incubation, was still 
there, only it looked in some like a bit of rubber, in some like hard- 
boiled eggs, and again in others it was dark and putrid. Instantly 
he reason.ed that it was that yolk that was killing the chicks by 
blood poisoning. 



56 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



He had only fifteen left but he decided to experiment on them, 
so he opened them ; his wife begged him to give them chloroform, 
which I believe he did, and he removed the toughened yolk, sewed 
up the wound, fed them lightly and all of the patients recovered and 
lived to maturity. 

It was a delicate operation, but my friend had the skillful hand 
of a trained surgeon. I never attempted it myself, but have made 
many a sad post mortem on little chicks dying from being "stuck 
up behind," for I make it a rule to hold "post mortems" on all sub- 
jects that die in my yards. 

One time a whole incubator of eggs — 240 — were overheated by a 
meddlesome child playing with the regulator. Two days later 117 
hatched, the others were cooked hard. Every one of the 117 
died although some lived to be eleven days old. I did everything 
I could think of to save them (except the surgical operation) but 
lost all. 

I feel sure -that either overheating or chilling so weakens the 
bowels that they cannot digest, or, rather, assimilate the egg, and 
that the yolk putrifies and causes blood poisoning; and that either 
overheating in the brooder or chilling before the chicks are a week 
old, will have the same result. Also if the chicks are fed too soon 
after hatching, the digestive juice or whatever it may be called, 
goes into the crop and gizzard to digest the new food and the yolk 
of egg is left to either digest very slowly or to not digest at all. 
In either case it will give diarrhoea and it may end fatally. 

I am often asked what to do for young chickens that have diar- 
rhoea, and also for those that are "stuck up behind." I know how 
almost hopeless these cases are, as they usually come from the un- 
assimilated yolk of egg, but I reply that rice boiled in milk, adding 
a teaspoonful of ground cinnamon to every pint of milk is about 
the best remedy for diarrhoea that I have tried, and to pick ofif 
with the fingers the dried excrement, slightly greasing the vent 
with carbolated vaseline is the only way for "stuck up." If the 
droppings are washed off it is almost sure to chill the already 
weakened bowels and result fatally. 




A Good Start. 



Summer Work 



Summer is our time for rest from hatching and now our energies 
must be directed to safely carrying through the summer the booder 
chicks and helping the older hens to shed their old clothes and come 
out in fine and glossy raiment as expeditiously as possible. 

Let us first look over our youngsters and see how we can keep 
them growing. They need a motherly and watchful eye and ear, 
and a watchful nose also, as much as children do. 

Our own lives are made up of little things, but a little chick's 
life is made up of infinitely little things and it is through little 
things that success is attained or failure courted. "Be sure to keep 
the pullets growing," was the vague order given in one of the poul- 
try books that years ago I was studying. The author did not tell 
how to keep them growing nor did he mention what would prevent 
them growing, and I just hated that man, but since then I decided 
that, poor fellow, he most likely did not know himself and was only 
dealing in generalities to write a plausible article for his book or 
paper without definitely saying anything. But he was right, we 
must keep the chickens growing and at the first indication that their 
growth has stopped we must investigate and find out the cause. 

What are the chief causes of chickens not doing well in the sum- 
mer? Lice and mites. If your chickens are not doing well treat 
them for lice even if )'ou cannot see them and give their house a 
good spraying with kerosine emulsion and a little carbolic acid. 

Comfort and proper food are the two great factors that will pro- 
mote the growth of our chicks, and cleanliness is the first require- 
ment. The drinking vessels at this season of the year require spe- 
cial care ; whatever may be used should be kept scrupulously clean. 
I find a sink brush is an excellent thing for scrubbing out the drink- 
ing vessels. They must be kept in the shade. They can be placed 
in a box set on its side or under a shed or tree, and besides being 
shaded they should be frequeuitly replenished during the day. 

Sunshine and Shade 

Provide shade for the growing chicks; shade from the burning 
rays of the sun. Nothing is more conducive to health than sunshine 
but it must be tempered by shade. Trees and bushes supply the 
best shade as the temperature close under growing green leaves is 
several degrees cooler than under anything that is dry or dead. 
Few realize what a necessity shade is to fowls. 

If an epidemic siezes the half grown chicks, it is attributed to 
any cause on earth but the lack of shade, when in very many cases 
this is the sole cause. Vertigo, blindness, stunted growth may all 
be due to the glare of the sun on unsheltered yards. Shade is a 
necessity and if trees or shrubs are lacking a good shelter can be 
made by driving a few stakes or small posts into the ground and 
making a frame upon which palm branches or brush can be laid. I 



58 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

have found a very serviceable temporary shade can be made by rip- 
ping open a common gunny sack and nailing four laths on the edges. 
This little frame can be laid across the top of a small pen or even 
hung on wire fence and afford a grateful shade. 

Overcrowding or the chicks huddling for even one night may 
stunt the growth or be the means of bringing on an epidemic of 
colds which may result in roup. 

But how to stop them crowding? A mother hen often solves the 
difficulty by taking the half grown chicks on the perch with her, 
but for brooder chicks some other plan must be found ; the best 
way is to divide them in'to flocks or colonies of only twenty-five in 
each, and supply comfortable perches for them. The chicks will in 
a short time take to the perches of their own accord. 

At one time I had not enough colony coops and a great many 
chicks. I put them a hundred together in my regular henneries, 
but they crowded and I not only was losing every night some of 
the best, but the survivors looked very badly. They sweat off in 
the night all they had gained during the day. I realized that this 
meant failure for me if I could not control it. I spent my evenings 
going around and patiently placing the chicks, hundreds of them, 
on the perches till I was completely tired out, when I decided to 
make it so desperately uncomfortable for them they could not 
crowd. 

I bought a bundle of six foot lath and made a lath platform or 
floor, by nailing them one and a half inches apart, the width of a 
lath, on stringers one inch by three. This made a tlooring of small 
lath perches three inches above the ground, and make it so un- 
comfortable for the chicks to crowd that it entirely prevented it. 
I placed regular perches four or five inches above the lath floor and 
in a few nights on miaking my nightly rounds with my lantern I 
had the satisfaction of finding all the chicks on the regulation 
perches. I have recommended the lath platform or floor to many 
and it has proved always successful. 

The Proper Range 

I would advise you to let the young chicks have free range, and 
when the pullets begin to show signs of maturing, or at any rate 
by the beginning of October, to put them into their permanent 
winter quarters, and to confine them so they will be under your 
control. They will lay more eggs, if they do not range too far. It 
has been proved many times and with different breeds, that hens in 
confinement lay more eggs than those that run at large. The hens 
can be watched better, are less liable to suffer from maladies ; the 
nests can be kept cleaner and the eggs gathered more easily, while 
on free range many eggs are lost, nests stolen and the hens will 
acquire the habit, which we are breeding out of them, of laying 
only a few eggs and then wanting to set. 

In reply to the question of pullets or hens, the rule is pullets for 
winter layers and hens for breeders. The reason for this is that 
pullets in most breeds give more eggs than hens, and also usually 
do not want to sit as freqitently, while the hen lays a larger egg 



SU^IMER WORK 59 

and the chicks from them are larger and sturdier than from pullets. 
In some breeds the two-year-old hen lays quite as well as pullets, 
so I would advise you to save two-year-old hens for mothers, for 
your flock next year, especially if they are pure bred, and to mate 
them to one or more, according to the number, vigorous, pure-bred 
cockerels. You had better sell oft all the other cockerels, or keep 
them by themselves and eat them, or you might have them capon- 
ized, if you can find anyone to do it for you. The usual price for 
caponizing is from five to ten cents per head. 

Teaching Them to Roost 

It is sometimes difficult to persuade the young chickens at this 
time of the year (September), when moved to winter quarters, to 
go into the coop or house, which they should occupy. The little 
perversities insist on returning to the place, where their mother 
uas raised them, or they will huddle together on the ground, while 
the older ones fly into the low trees. Night after nigt, they have to 
be carried to their house. I, however, have found that by driving 
them gently with a broom for two or at most three nights, they 
will soon, learn what is expected of them. A broom is by far the 
best way of driving chickens without frightening them. 

A broom in each hand is the best way of driving a large herd of 
turkeys, also, by gently waving them on each side. They will be 
afraid of the broom, but never become wild or afraid of the attend- 
ant in this way. It is entirely possible to drive the profits out of a 
flock of hens by stoning and pelting them every time they get into 
mischief. Be quiet in your manner if you wish to be successful 
with hens. Make the fowls feel that, when you are present there 
is a protector among them, not something that is likely to scare 
or harm them. The only way to keep your fowls on good terms 
with you is by keeping them tame and treating them in a commonr 
sense manner. 

The Dry Hopper 

In the matter of feeding hens on a farm, I would much prefer the 
dry hopper method, keeping one hopper full of mixed grains and 
one hopper with beef-scraps or granulated milk, and letting the 
fowls have free range until it is time to put them in their winter 
quarters. Then instead of only grain in the hopper, make the mix- 
ture of bran, corn meal and alfalfa meal, or take one of the good 
balanced rations sold at the poultry supply houses for the hopper. 
The reason for this change which should be made gradually, is that 
the fowls being confined, do not get the exercise and consequently 
may get over-fat from eating the whole grains, while the finely 
ground food has to be eaten more slowly. For fowls in confinement 
besides the hopper or finely ground feed, they should have a scratch 
pen in which the grain is thrown every morning for them to scratch 
in. This will give them the exercise which they would otherwise 
miss after being on free range all the summer. 

After getting the fowls accustomed to their winter quarters, you 
can, if you wish, let them out for two hours before sun down to 
run on the grass or green winter wheat, or alfalfa. This will give 



6o 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



them a little exercise and change, but it is not absolutely necessary 
unless quite convenient. Of course they must be supplied with 
green food and a balanced egg ration. 

By studying the scientific and practical management of poultry 
and remembering the three conditions of egg production, comfort, 
exercise and the proper rations, you cannot fail to make a success 
of poultry raising on your farm. 

If you decide upon making eggs for the table or market your prin- 
cipal object, I would strongly recommend you to have an egg route 
in your nearest city, taking the eggs in yourself to special custom- 
ers. Your surplus fowls you could also dispose of to private cus- 
tomers, or if you did not wish to^ have the trouble of dressing them, 
you could send them to one of the markets. There are so many dif- 
ferent ways of making money, if you only know how. Study that 
way and give your customers of the best. You w'U surely make a 
success of it. 




A I'raotieal Jiinl Inexisensive Trap Nest 



The Trap Nest 



"We are extremely new to -the business of scientific poultry rais- 
ing and have a very hazy idea of some of it. We want to develop 
a flock of heavy layers and would like to know what 'trap-nesting' 
means and how it is done/' These words from one of my corre- 
spondents suggested a talk on the "trap-nest." 

Trap-nests are one of the inventions of this progressive age. It 
is the surest, quickest method of securing better eggs and more of 
them. A trap-nest is a nest box, the entrance to which closes auto.- 
matically when the hen steps into the nest and keeps her in the box 
until the person in charge releases her, thus showing which hen laid 
the egg. 

The progressive farmer or dairyman knows that he must test the 
milk of his cows and he finds when he begins to do so that he has 
cows in his herd that do not pay for their keep. It is the same in 
the poultry business; in every flock of hens there are idlers that do 
not pay for their feed — they lay so few eggs that their owners are 
out of pocket by keeping them. I would not have believed this had 
I not discovered it to be the case with some of my own hens. The 
first season that I used trap-nests I found a hen which went on the 
nest every day but only laid four eggs in one month, while another 
in the same yard laid twenty-nine. It was a revelation to me. The 
first year I discovered that nearly one-fourth of my hens barely paid 
for their board. That was not the kind of hens I wanted. I was in 
the business for profit and not loss, so I weeded them out, and very 
good eating they made. 

The second year I got, with a reduced flock, a twenty per cent 
less feed bill and fully twenty-five per cent increase of eggs — more 
eggs at less cost. Surely the trap-nests repaid me for the slight 
extra trouble of attending to them. They were not only of use in 
discovering the best layers, but I became better acquainted per- 
sonally with each hen. I found that the hen which laid the most 
eggs had the most fertile eggs, while the poor layers' eggs were not 
nearly so fertile. 

Trap-nests make the hens tame and tame hens lav more eggs 
than wild hens. Some hens may at first object to being handled, 
but after a few days they become reconciled to it. Aly White 
Plymouth Rocks were so tame that when I opened the door they 
would step into my hands or sit quietly until I lifted them up to 
ascertain the numbers of their leg-bands. 

In order to make the use of the trap-nests efflcient we must be 
able to know each hen individually, and for this purpose each hen 
must wear a leg-band, a small bracelet, made of copper or aluminum 
with a number on it. 

By means of the trap-nest one can discover any hen that is be- 
coming too fat, or too thin and she can' be moved into another and 
more suitable pen. Tlie trap-nest also renders a great service in 



63 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



detecting the egg eater. If there is reason to suspect a certain hen 
of this villainous habit give her an egg while she is on the nest; if 
the egg after a time disappears it is pretty good evidence that the 
culprit has been discovered and decapitation should be the verdict. 
Another advantage in using trap-nests is that it gives one an op- 
portunity to examine the hens for vermin, and by taking a small 
can of insect powder around occasionally while visiting the nests, 
and powdering the hens, they can be kept perfectly clean with 
very little trouble. I use a baking powder can, having perforated 
the lid, making a large pepper pot. A liberal use not blown on out 
of an air gun, but freely peppered on the hens, is very beneficial. 




A Group of Four Trap Nests in Position. 

I visit the nests about three times during the morning to release 
the hens and gather 'the eggs. One trap-nest is required for every 
three hens. When a hen is taken from her nest the egg is marked 
with her leg-band number and the date and credit is given her on 
the record sheet or record books. This is a sheet or page marked 
off in squares of 'thirty-one days with the hen's name or number at 
the head of the line. I mark B for brooding, S for sold, M for mar- 
keted, and so on, and have in this way the history of each hen at a 
glance. 

Trap-nests have taught me which hens lay the best shaped eggs, 
which the largest size, which the strongest fertilized, which are the 



THE TRAP NEST 



63 



best winter layers, which pullets begin early, the number of eggs 
they lay in succession, the number of times they become broody 
and many other facts that can be learned in no other way ; in fact, 
I find my records exceedingly interesting and profitable reading. 
Trap-nests were a perfect revelation to me and aided me in my suc- 
cess with poultry. 

There are a number of trap-nest plans, also trap-nests, on 'the 
market, ranging in price from $1 to $25. I have bought and tried 
several and find that the most satisfactory trap-nest is one that has 
two compartments and opens in the front to take the hen ofT. In 
other words, it must be comfortable for the hen and for the 
attendant. 

The nest box here described was made by G. M. Gowell, agricul- 
turist of the Maine experiment station, after a careful study of the 
various nest boxes on the market, and is intended to combine their 
excellences and avoid their defects. 



fei<^ 






/ 




I 



This is the box that is illustrated here and the description is in 
Mr. Gowell's own words: The nest box is very simple, inexpensive, 
easy to attend and certain in its action. It is a box-like structure 
and is twenty-eight inches long, thirteen inches wide, and thirteen 
inches deep — inside measurements. A division board with a circu- 
lar opening seven and one-half inches in diameter is placed across 
the box twelve inches from the back end. The back end is the nest 
proper. Instead of a close door at the entrance, a light frame of 
inch by inch-and-a-half stuff is covered with wire netting of one- 
half inch mesh. The door is ten and one-half inches wide and ten- 
inches high, and does not fill the entire entrance, a space of twO' and 
one-half inches being left at the bottom and one and one-half inches 
at the top, with a good margin at the sides to avoid friction. If it 
filled the entire space it would be clumsy in its action. It is hinged 
at the top and opens up into the box. The hinges are placed on the 
front of the door rather than at the back or center, the better to se- 
cure complete closing action. 



64 ^IRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

The "trip" consists of one piece of wire aboivt three-sixteenths of 
an inch in diameter and eighteen and one-half inches long, bent as 
shown in drawing. A piece of board six inches wide and just long 
enough to reach across the box inside is nailed flatwise in front of 
the partition and one inch below the top of the box, a space of one- 
fourth of an inch being left between the edge of the board and the 
partition. The purpose of this board is only to support the trip 
wire in place. The six-inch section of the trjp wire is placed across 
the board and the wire slipped through the quarter-inch slot and 
passed down, close 'to and in front of the center of the seven and 
one-half-inch circular opening. Small wire staples are driven nearly 
down over the six-inch section of the wire into the board so as to 
hold it in place and yet let it roll sidewise easily. When the door 
is set, the half-inch section of the wire marked "A" comes under a 
hardwood peg, or a tack with a large round head, which is driven 
into the lower edge of the door frame. The hen passes in through 
the circular opening and in doing so presses the wire to one side and 
the trip slips from its connection with the door. The door prompt- 
ly swings down and fastens itself in place by its lower edge strik- 
ing the light end of a wooden latch or lever, pressing it down and 
slipping over it. The latch is five inches long, Oiue inch wide and 
half an inch thick. The latch acts quickly enough to catch the door 
before it rebounds. The double box with nest in' the rear end is 
necessary as when a bird has laid and desires to leave the nest, she 
steps to the front and remains there until released. 

With one section only she would be very likely to crush her egg 
by standing upon it. 

The boxes, which have no tops, are arranged in cases in groups 
of four and slide in and out like drawers. They may, of 
course, be used singly by simply providing a cover for each box. 
When a hen has layed, the nest is pulled part way out or the cover 
lifted, as the case may be, and the hen removed. 

I have made nest boxes myself from these plans. I used wooden 
shoe boxes or cracker boxes and easily made two in a morning. The 
wire was a little difficult to bend, but a boy did it for me. One word 
of caution : It is well to have nests enough, because the hens must 
be coaxed to lay and when they get ready they must not be kept 
waiting. If a hen is dissatisfied with her nest she may hold her egg 
for twenty-four hours and in time be taught to lay only every other 
day. It is wise to encourage the hens to lay and I have found these 
trap nests so cleverly invented by Mr. Gowell are much liked by the 
hens, while others I bought frightened the hens and prevented their 
laying. They were enclosed on the nest, pushing their heads out 
and trampling on the eggs, breaking some and entirely defeating 
the object of the nest which is "more eggs and better hens." 



Grit and Gizzard 



One of the most important things necessary for the health of 
poultry is a supply of grit of the right kind. Nature provides a use 
for every organ of the body, and in every body an organ for each 
specific duty. Most animals are provided with teeth to enable them 
to prepare their food for the action of the fluids secreted by the 
stomach, pancreas and liver: It will also be remembered that be- 
sides being crushed in the mouth by the teeth, the food is acted 
on by the saliva. 

Nature has not endowed birds with teeth, but it has provided a 
good substitute in the gizzard. This is a tough, strong, muscular 
organ, so situated in the body that all food taken into the mouth 
must pass through it. Previous to passing through the gizzard, 
all food has been received into a pouch or bag, the crop, where it re- 
mains some time. There it is soaked with and acted upon by a fluid 
secreted in and by this pouch, and a modified process takes place 
similar to that of the saliva in the mouth of animals with teeth. 

The food gradually leaves this pouch (the crop), passes through 
the proventriculus and into the gizzard, where it is ground up, and 
thence it goes to the intestines, where, after being mixed with other 
fluids, it passes on and the nutriment is absorbed. No doubt a 
bird may be made to exist for a time, perhaps a considerable time, 
without grit, just as a person may live for years with bad teeth, 
or perhaps with none at all. We all know how little such people 
enjoy their food or health, and surely if the birds do not have the 
means of masticating their food they can neither be healthy nor 
enjoy th.eir food, and will not give their owners a good return for 
their food and care. 

The Best Grit 

The gizzard is a marvelously strong little mill and when pro- 
vided with the proper grit, or little grindstones, will keep the fowls 
in good condition. Hard, sharp substances are necessary, such as 
Hint stones or granite pounded up. Broken china, earthenware, 
glass and all such substances broken up make excellent grit. 

When the grit has not sharp edges, the harder parts of the food 
are not digested, husks and green good accumulate and frequently 
cause a stoppage between the crop and the gizzard, so that nothing 
but liquid can pass. A lack of sharp grit brings on diarrohea ; also, 
the gall overflows and sometimes the gall-sack bursts. There are 
two passages, one into and the other out of the gizzard ; they are 
both on one side of it. The one leading out of it is much smaller 
than the one leading into it. Thus the gizzard can receive larger 
substances but cannot get rid of them until they are ground small; 
and sharp grit is needed for this. 

When I first came to California I purchased a gristmill and, alas, 
I had broken china also! I had two dozen hens just bought and 



66 IMRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

proceeded to grind up some crockery for them. The man who was 
building my fence thought it dreadfully cruel of me, remarking, "It's 
euongh to kill a dog; let alone those poor hens." "The hens will not 
eat it unless they need it," was my reply, though I agreed with him 
about the dog. To his surprise those hens ate almost a quart of it. 
None of them died and they soon commenced to lay. Give the little 
chicks the small chick-grit. Eight pounds of this will be sufficient 
for the first two months of the life of fifty little chicks and then 
they should have a larger size. One hundred pounds of hen grit, 
which can be bought at the poultry supply houses, is sufficient to 
last a hundred hens about a year. 

Pigeons consume more grit than hens, proportionately to size. 
G'n e pigeons grit to keep them healthy. My attention to grit and 
gizzards was aroused many years ago. "Will madame look to 
what I have found in the interior of this fowl?" said my French 
maid to me. She had opened the gizzard of a fat young hen and 
had found thirteen china buttons and two pearl buttons or parts of 
them, mixed with the black adobe mud. Since that day I have tried 
to keep my fowls well supplied with grit. 

Starve for Lack of Grit 

'T cannot think what ails my fowls," said one lady. "They have 
all the food they can eat, but here is another dead." "Have you ever 
opened one to discover the trouble?" I asked. "Yes, but I never 
find anything." "Well, I think your fowls have indigestion," I 
said, "but we will hold a post mortem on this one and try to solve 
the difficulty." We fund a medium sized gizzard, full of dark 
earth, no stones, no grit, not even buttons. That told the story, 
the fowls were starving to death in the midst of plenty just for lack 
of grit to grind their food. 

!• occasionally make curious discoveries when I hold a post mor- 
tem, for the contents of a school boys' pockets are scarcely more 
varied than those of a fowl's gizzard, when not supplied with the 
proper kind of grit. My Indian Runner ducks being great pets and 
never doing any mischief were allowed the freedom of my place. 
I had noticed them around the out-door fireplace where the caul- 
dron was boiled; old boxes, building scrap and rubbish being used 
for the fire. 

I thought the ducks were picking up bits of charcoal, but one 
morning I found a fine duck dead. The post mortem revealed an 
enormous gizzard, twice the usual size, on opening which I found 
a number of nails, some bits of wire, two two-pointed tacks. Sev- 
eral of the nails were embedded in the gizzard and the largest one 
pierced quite through it. The ducks had always been supplied with 
plenty of river sand, but this particular duck seemed to have de- 
v'eloped an ostrich's appetite. After that I gave them also the 
smaller chick grit and with most excellent results, for never ducks 
laid as many eggs> as did those. Grit, oyster shells, or clam shells, 
and charcoal are indispensable for fowls. 



GRIT AND GIZZARD 67 

The Symptoms of Grit Craving 

When your hens seem "mopey" just break up some old china, 
and see if they will not refuse the best food for it. 

When you see water run from a hen's mouth, when she puts 
her head down, the trouble is indigestion. Give her grit and char- 
coal. 

When your hens do not care for their food, tone up their appe- 
tites by a dose of grit. 

When they are not laying as well as you think they should, give 
them grit. 

When hens moult slowly it is often from impaired digestion. 
Give them giit niid charcoal. 

When you wii'!; the hens to derive all the benefit of the nutrition 
in the food, supply them with good, sharp grit. 

If you want vigorous, profitable hens give them a liberal supply 
of grit. 

When your hens are too fat, when they lay thin shelled eggs, 
give them grit. 

A friend of mine was very much troubled with soft-shelled eggs. 
She got her husband to take his wagon to the hills, where there is 
a good quarry of what is called rotten granite. He brought home 
a load of it and in a few days the hens laid hard-shelled eggs and 
she told me that the shells were so hard that the chicks could hardly 
break out of them. 

The value of good sharp grit can scarcely be overestimated, and 
yet even intelligent people do not realize it. Some think that there 
is grit enough in the natural soil. This is rarely the case, for hens, 
wild birds, or pigeons pick up the sharpest and best grit, so that 
even on a farm where the hens have free range there is rarely 
enough grit of the proper kind, and when fowls are kept yarded 
there is never enough unless they are artificially supplied. If you 
doubt this, try the experiment of giving your hens some broken 
china. The pieces should be not larger than a pea and should have 
three sharp corners. You will be surprised to see how eagerly the 
hens will eat the china. 

The best layer I ever had laid 225 eggs in nine months and 
moulted during that time. She was the greatest eater of grit I 
ever saw. Every night before going to roost she ran down to the 
grit box and took three pieces. Every time she laid an egg she 
refreshed herself with some grit, and I learned by observation that 
all my best layers were the most constant visitors to the grit box. 
Hens that consume the most grit are those that get the most nutri- 
tion out of their food, lay the most eggs, are the healthiest, have the 
most fertile eggs and pay the best. 

Grit to grind the food and cliarcoal to keep it pure during this 
process and, for laying hens, oyster shells to supply the lime for 
the eggshells, these are so necessary that we are almost tired of 
the mention of them in the poultry papers, but "lest we forget" I 
have written about them a£rain. 



Pests of a Poultry Yard 

Fleas 

The common hen flea (pulex avium) is prevalent in the Pacific 
States. It is found in filthy hen houses, especially those located 
on sandy, soil. Dirty nests, cracks, dust and dark corners are fav- 
orite breeding- places for them. They produce great irritation of 
the skin and in young- birds the growth may be permanently stunt- 
ed and many young chickens killed by them. 

For treating flea bites bathe the bites with 'vinegar and water, or 
lemon juice, and apply carbolated vaseline or lard in which a little 
carbolic acid has been mixed — 5 drops of carbolic acid (90 per cent) 
to a tablespoonful of lard. 

To free poultry houses and yards of the fleas, use whitewash 
/reely, adding a pint of carbolic acid to every twelve gallons of 
whitewash. Spray it or slop it thoroughly into all the corners and 
cracks. Dark dusting places in the poultry yard afford favorable 
breeding places for fleas. These corners should be soaked with 
hot soapsuds or boiling salt water to kill the young broods of fleas. 
Use carbolized lime, tobacco dust, and moth balls in the nests. 

Bedbugs and Ticks 

Bedbugs sometimes attack poultry on their roosts and suck their 
blood. In California there is also a species of tick that is fatal to 
poultry which somewhat resembles the bedbug of the East. To 
destroy them fumigation is usually employed, either fumigating 
with sulphur or, better still, the cyanide process used for the scale 
on citrus trees. 

To fumigate with sulphur close every door and window and see 
that there are no cracks to admit the air. Burn one pound of sul- 
phur for every 100 square feet of floor space in the house. A house 
10x10 will require one pound of sulphur ; one 20x10, two pounds, 
and so on. The sulphur must be burned in iron vessels which 
should be set on gravel or sand so there may be no danger from 
fire. Into each vessel put a handful of carpenter shavings saturated 
with kerosene and upon these sprinkle the sulphur. Apply a 
match to the shavings and hastily leave the house, closing the door. 
The house should remain closed for 5 hours. Fumigation may be 
followed by thoroughly whitewashing the inside of the house. 
Painting or spraying the house with corrosive sublimate is also 
very effective. Care must be used in handling this poison. 

Mites 

There are several varieties of the tiny blood-sucking mites to be 
found in carelessly kept henneries. The red mite is the most com- 
mon and active of all parasites which attack birds. It is about one 
thirty-fifth of an inch in length, white or grey in color except when 
filled with blood, when they will be red or black. It hides by day 



PESTS OF A POULTRY YARD 69 

in the corners and crevices of buildings, nests, perches, floors, etc., 
where they may be found in clusters. At night these clusters scat- 
ter over the birds and by pricking the skin, can fill themselves with 
blood. They are injurious not only on account of the blood they 
draw, but because of the itching pain and loss of rest. They will 
even kill young fowls and setting hens. When they are discovered, 
vigorous means should be adopted to. get rid of them. The Iowa 
State Experiment Station gives a full description of the best and 
cheapest way of exterminating these mites. At this station the 
kerosene emulsion was found to be perfectly effective in killing 
them. It is made as follows: 

KEROSENE EMULSION— In one gallon of boiling water dis- 
solve one pound bar of soap or one pound of soap powder. Remove 
from the fire, add immediately one gallon of kerosene, churn or agi- 
tate violently for ten minutes, or until the solution becomes like a 
thick cream. If the oil and water separate on standing, then the 
soap was' not caustic enough. Take one quart of this, add to it ten 
quarts of water, spray thoroughly the houses every three days with 
this diluted emulsion until all the mites are exterminatea. To make 
it more effective you may add one pint of crude carbolic acid to the 
emulsion as soon as taken from the fire. The diluted emulsion (one 
part to ten of water) is also used to rid fowls of lice. By using this 
spray once a month always, the houses can be kept perfectly free 
from vermin and thoroughly disinfected from disease. 

Lice 

There are nine varieties of lice affecting poultry. Some of these 
lice spread rapidly. One infested bird is capable of spreading the 
vermin through a large flock. They cause dumpishness, drooping 
wings, indifference to food and ^nay stunt or even kill the dhicks. 
One of the best means of preventing lice is the dust bath. This 
bath should be a wallow of freshly turned earth, mellow and slight- 
ly damp, out of doors under some tree in the summer time or in a 
box six or eight inches deep in the hennery in the rainy weather. 
Provided with a good dust bath, healthy bens will almost keep 
themselves clean from lice. When fowls are badly infested with 
lice they should be well dusted with a good lice powder, of which 
there are a number on the market. Two good powders can be 
made as follows : To one peck of sifted coal ashes add one-half 
ounce of 90 per cent carbolic acid. When mixed thoroughly, add an 
equal amount of tobacco dust. 2nd : Take half peck of sifted road- 
dust, four fluid ounces of any good liquid lice killer; mix thoroughly 
and add bulk for bulk of tobacco dust. 

The roosts may be painted with liquid lice killer, or the fowls 
placed in a box for three hours, the floor of which has been painted 
with lice killer and the top covered with burlap, care being taken 
not to smother the hen. The nits of lice hatch about every five 
days. The treatment should be repeated until all the young lice 
have been exterminated. 



Diseases of Poultry 



There is no reason for chickens being unhealthy except, as a 
general thing, from the carelessness or ignorance of their owners. 
Carelessness in not keeping the fowls clean, in not being regular in 
their feeding, in the lack of pure water and shade and in giving them 
either draughty sleeping quarters or too close and badly ventilated 
coops. 

Poultry keepers in the East, after years of trouble and anxiety 
over roup, which I really think is much worse there than here, are 
coming to the conclusion that open front houses even there where 
they have zero weather, will prevent roup and colds. 

Here in our favored climate, open front houses, cleanliness and 
plenty of green food are a sure prevention of roup. 

I am glad to be able to say that although there are more than 
double the number of pure bred fowls in California now 
than ever before, there is a minimum amount of roup. Poultry 
raisers are using common sense in the feeding and care of chickens, 
looking upon poultry raising as a business, a money proposition, 
when handled in a business-like way, and the result is very little 
roup and less sickness of any kind. 

Roup must be transmitted by contagion; healthy fowls will not 
have it unless a roupy fowl is introduced into the flock, or the in- 
fection is brought in through water or food, through coops in which 
roupy fowls have been confined or through the infection being 
carried on the garments of the attendant. 

Many Kinds of Roup 

It was formerly the custom to call nearly all the ailments of 
fowls due to taking cold by the name of "Roup." Dr. Salmon of the 
Bureau of Animal Industry, Washington, D. C, makes a distinc- 
tion, however, between the different kinds of colds or roup, simple 
catarrh, and infectious catarrh also called roupy catarrh, and 
diphtheric catarrh or diphtheric roup. Simple catarrh is easily 
cured, will often get well without treatment ; roupy catarrh is very 
infectious and more difficult to cure; but diphtheric roup is the 
worst of all and greatly resembles the diphtheria of children. There 
is also another disease called "Canker" which much resembles diph- 
theric roup, but is less severe. It is caused by another germ and 
needs other treatment. 

Catarrh 

All of these diseases commence in the same manner. Usually the 
first symptoms noticed are a slight discharge from the nostrils, eyes 
wet and watery from mucous, and often some bubbling at the cor- 
ners with coughing and sneezing. In simple catarrh more serious 
symptoms will not have developed in a few days, but with roupy 
catarrh the discharge thickens and obstructs the breathing by fill- 
ing the nostrils and there is a foul odor to it. Sometimes swell- 



DISEASES OF POULTRY ^\ 

head develops, then one or both eyes are closed, the birds wipe 
their eyes on their shoulders, sleep with their heads vmder their 
wings and the discharge sticks to and dries on their feathers. This 
dried mucus will spread the disease through the flock, for in it are 
the germs of the disease, the seeds of which may be sown whenever 
the chicken moves or shakes itself, or when others touch it or a 
feather falls. Chickens with this disease should be isolated, the 
mucus gently washed off, using a disinfectant in the water, a few 
drops of carbolic acid or a tablet of protiodide of mercury in a pint 
of water. Roupy catarrh is difficult of cure, is very infectious and 
often fatal. 

Diphtheric Roup ■ 

Diphtheric roup is the worst of all. It requires different remedies 
to the simple catarrh or roupy catarrh. It commences usually in 
the same manner with a slight cold, but the mucus membrane of 
the mouth, throat, nasal passages, and the eyes are affected. False 
membrane forms on these parts, very much resembling in appear- 
ance the diphtheria of children, and by some, thought to be the 
same. At first the patches are small and scattered but have a tend- 
ency to run together. The disease appears suddenly, the fowl is 
feverish, dumpish, and disinclined to eat. As the disease progresses 
the mouth and throat become filled with false memberane and 
mucus until the fowl dies of suffocation, or the poison from the 
disease gets into the circulation and the fowl dies of blood poison- 
ing or paralysis. 

Canker 

Canker is som.etimes confounded with diphtheria. It is an ulcera- 
tive disease of the mouth. It is frequently found in cock birds after 
fighting and is common in birds that have been working in mouldy 
or musty litter or that have been fed on spoiled grain. The disease 
is seldom noticed until the fowl shows a collection of yellowish 
ulcers or cheesy growth on the roof of the mouth, the side of the 
tongue or the angles of the jaws, and sometimes at the opening of 
the windpipe. It is very common among pigeons. 

Roup cures can be bought at the principal poultry supply houses 
but for the use of those living in the country too far away to pro- 
cure these, I will give a few simple remedies that can be easily and 
quickly used in the first stages, thus arresting an apid«mic. 
For local treatment a good atomizer is the most satisfactory way of 
applying it, or a small syringe, and as handy as anything is a small 
sewing machine oil can. 

Remedies 

(1). When first the cold is noticed, put a bit of Bluestone (sul- 
phate of copper) in the drinking water. A piece as big as a navy 
bean in a quart of water, not any stronger. This is a germ killer, 
dries up the cold in the head, is a disinfectant and will prevent the 
other chickens taking the disease. So, if any chick takes cold put 
this into the water of the whole flock for a week to prevent the 
dsease spreading. 

(2). For a Common Cold : A pill of quinine and one of asafoetida 



■J3 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

(1 gr. of each) with half a teaspoonful of cayenne pepper will fre- 
quently cure a cold in one night. Aconite also is a good remedy. 
One drop in a teaspoonful of milk. Always give a grown hen the 
same dose as to adult human beings. 

The following are cures for Roupy Catarrh : 

(3). One talDlespoonful of castor oil, half a tablespoonful tur- 
pentine, a tablespoonful of kerosene, a tablespoonful of camphor- 
ated oil and four drops of carbolic acid. Shake before using. Squirt 
a drop up each nostril and into the cleft of the mouth, and for swell 
head rub the whole head with it. This is an excellent cure and 
cheap. 

(4). Put one cupful of kerosene in half a gallon of water ; the 
oil will float on top ; dip the fowl's head slowly into this, holding it 
under whilst you count three. It will sneeze and cough and you 
must wipe ofif all the mucus with a rag and carefully burn the rag. 
Repeat the treatment twice a day. 

(5). Take of lard two tablespoonsful ; vinegar, mustard, cayenne 
pepper, each one tablespoonful ; mix thoroughly, add flour enough 
to make a stiff dough. Give a bolus of this the size of the first 
joint of the little finger. One dose frequently cures. If not, repeat 
in twelve or twenty-four hours. 

(6). Dr. N. W. Sanborn gives as a remedy: "Spray all mucus 
surfaces with the following: Extract of Witch Hazel, four table- 
spoonsful ; liquid carbolic acid, four drops ; water, two tablespoons- 
ful. Do this twice a day, squeezing the bulb of the atomizer five 
times for each nostril and twice for the mouth If there is any 
watery or foamy eyes, give one squeeze for each. 

(7). One part of pulverized gum camphor and seven parts of 
pulverized liquorice root. Blow up the nostrils, into the cleft of 
the mouth and down the throat. This should be made fresh as the 
camphor evaporates. 

(8). Equal parts of powdered alum, magnesia and sulphur 
blown into the throat and nostrils through a quill. 

(9). For Diphtheric Roup: Peroxide of hydrogen is, I think, the 
best remedy. Dilute with from one to three parts of water. The 
solutions, when applied to diseased surfaces, begin to foam, and 
should be repeated until there is no more bubbling. A little of the 
solution forced into the nostrils by the use of a dropping tube or 
atomizer is driven higher up into the nostrils by the force of the 
foaming, reaching parts otherwise out of touch. 

(10). For Canker: Four grains of Sulpho-carbolate of zinc to 
one ounce of water. Paint the canker spots with this night and 
morning and in three days the germs will be destroyed. The chick- 
ens should have nourishing food, such as bread and milk and 
chopped onions. 

If you have any doubts as to whether the disease is canker or 
roup you had better use the peroxide of hydrogen one day and the 
zinc the day following, alternating the treatment. It will not do 
to mix the two medicines at the same time as one neutralizes the 
other. 



Town-Lot Fowls 



The rear of a city lot can be made to yield both profit and pleas- 
ure when devoted to poultry and fruit trees, and many families may 
enjoy fresh eggs and an occasional roast chicken, or a "Christ- 
massy" chicken pie by simply utilizing some of the vacant space 
in the rear yards of their homes. 

We sometimes hear that chickens cannot be raised successfully 
on a city lot because the land is too valuable and that the business 
will not pay where all the food has to be bought. 

The value of a city lot is often over-estimated when chicken rais- 
ing is suggested for the back yard, but the question is, what income 
is your back lot now yielding? 

I expect that the majority of city back lots are either an outlay 
or an eyesore to their owners. They grow nothing but grass or 
weeds, for wdiich nothing is received. \Mien mowed tliere is that 
expense to it, with the water tax added, which is not inconsiderable. 

As much as I like lawn and flowers in the front of the house, I 
think the oftimes neglected back yard should be made valuable also. 
Nothing to my taste can improve it like fruit trees, which are bene- 
fited by having poultry around them, and will bring in good re- 
turns, as I know by experience. 

The main requisite to making a success of poultry raising on a 
city lot, or anywhere else in fact, is to be thoroughly in love with 
your fowls and your trees. The man or woman who hates to work 
around the hens, who grudges the time and trouble, will never 
make a success of the work and had better let it alone. 

How to plan your back lot? It should be fenced to suit your 

PLANCJPCUICICEK 
TAJSX) 




74 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

space and poultry. If it is a small yard, it may be difficult to fence 
it high enough for the active breeds such as the Leghorns, but if 
you use poultry netting and do not place any rail on the top, you 
will not have any trouble with the American breeds, even with a 
comparatively low fence. If there is no rail on the top, the fowls do 
not see where the netting ends and they seldom try to find the top, 
but with a rail they light on that and over they go. 

It may help a beginner to see the plan of my chicken yard on a 
city lot. Tlie chicken yards are 50 feet by 32 feet ; there are eight 
fruit trees and three water faucets in the yard. The fruit trees, 
plum, peach and fig, yielded several dollars' worth of fruit two 
years after planting, and as they grew older, increased the value of 
the crop in the back lot, and gave the fowls shade. 

Hen House Construction 

The earth around the trees is kept well spaded and moist, so the 
hens enjoy it as a dust bath and that keeps them clean from lice and 
mites. The hen house is a shed thirty-two feet long and eight feet 
wide. It is divided in two parts for two pens of fowls. Each end 
of it is composed of a roosting room eight feet by eight feet, with 
space enugh for forty hens, if necessary, although I never wish to 
keep more than twenty-five in each side. 

The roosting room is separated from the scratching pen only by 
a board twelve inches wide, to keep out the straw. The back and 
sides of the roosting room are of tongued and groved flooring and 
perfectly tight. The whole length of the front of the shed is open, 
except the roosting room, which has a front of burlap. One side of 
the roosting room is entirely open into the scratching pen, so that 
the roosting room is only tightly enclosed on two sides and has 
free ventilation into the scratching pen and only the burlap on the 
south side. Consequently my fowls never have colds. The roof is 
of shakes twelve inches to the weather. The back of the shed is six 
and a half feet high, the front five feet. 

At the south end of the two yards is a smaller one for setting hens 
or for young chicks, as they do better kept away from the older 
fowls. This small yard is very useful for fattening chickens, tur- 
keys or ducks for the table, and in it I have a small portable coop 
for the youngsters. 

I have a water faucet in each yard. This is a great saving of 
labor and anxiety, for if I am to be absent any length of time I 
leave the faucet dripping just a little and know the hens will not go 
thirsty. 

I feed grain in the scratching pens, dry mash in hoppers, green 
lawn clippings and refuse vegetables, besides the table scraps. 

There is a saying that an American family wastes or throws 
away food enough to support a French family. Why not give all 
this waste to some hens? The table scraps, the scraping of the 
plates, the outer leaves of cabbages, even the parings of potatoes, 
apples and nearly all vegetables now consigned to the garbage pail 
would be enough to almost keep a few hens. 



TOWN LOT FOWLS 



75 



Possibilities of a Town Lot 

Have 3'ou any idea what returns one dozen laying pullets or 
hens would give you? I have, for I have kept that number on a 
town lot. I have not an accurate account of all the eggs laid, but 
I know there were over two thousand in one year, more than 
enough to supply a family of six with delicious fresh eggs and to 
raise between fifty and sixty young fowls for frying and roasting, 
besides the old ones for stews or for "poulet au ris," a French dish 
of which we are extremely fond. 

Nine-tenths of the home owners have sufficient space in their 
back yards to produce enough chickens and eggs to supply their 
own families, and in this way greatly lessen the expense of living, 
or in other words, make enough to pay their meat and grocery 
bills, or else give them all the fresh eggs they can consume with 
a nice fry always available for Sunday dinner or when a friend un- 
expectedly drops in. 

I will give you a formula for feeding hens on a town lot which I 
will guarantee will give you eggs in abundance and at all seasons. 
It is easy to feed, for all you have to do is to mix it dry in a big 
box and dip up half a bucket, once or twice a week and fill a box 
or hopper full of it as the need is. It is quite dry and will keep any 
length of time. 

Formula for Balanced Ration 

Mix by measure two parts bran, one part corn-meal, one part 
alfalfa meal, one part beef scraps. Keep some of this in a box or 
hopper or bucket — dry, perfectly dry — always before the hens. This 
dry food in the hopper lasts quite a long time, for the hens prefer 
the table scraps which are fed to them only once a day (at night) 
and they like lawn clippings, but this dry feed keeps them in just 
the right condition for egg production — neither too fat nor too thin. 

If you do not want to- take the trouble to mix this for yourself, 
you can go to any of the poultry supply houses and buy the food 
already mixed. This food when put up by reliable firms is what is 
called the "balanced ration" — that is, it contains the dements of 
the egg — and when the hens are fed this they simply cannot help 
laying. They are egg machines which turn the properly balanced 
ration into eggs. 



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The Moulting Season 



The moult with hens in the natural state lasts from sixty to a 
hundred days, but with some hens, especially with hens that have 
hard, close-growing- feathers the moult and the results of it 
will sometimes last over a hundred and fifty days ; in fact 1 
have known of some that went six months without laying any 
eggs. Too long to spend half a year dressmaking. Think of 
the loss' to their owners ! I did not wonder at the man who 
told me of it, saying that he just turned them out and "let the 
blamed things rustle for themselves," but I thought if he had helped 
them "rustle" perhaps they would not have been so long about it. 

Let us consult Nature as you know I am very fond of doing. 
After the wild bird has raised her yoimg and her responsibilities 
are somewhat over, she moults. The older she is the longer and 
slower is the process of dropping her feathers and growing them 
again, because as she ages her vitality is gradually lessening. It is 
the same with hens ; the older a hen becomes the longer will be the 
period of the moult, and not only that but the later will it com- 
mence. Let us again turn to Nature and in this copy her. We 
want the old hens, if we keep them at all. to be the parents of our 
young next spring and we are only keeping them over for a certain 
reason (or for sentiment), as they have, perhaps, proved them- 
selves to be our very best layers, or as the parents of our prize win- 
ners, or may be prize winners themselves and therefore we want 
their offspring in the hopes of perpetuating these excellent traits. 

The Starving Process 

How shall we help these elderly hens to get quickly through the 
moult? Some years ago I read of a man in New York State, wdio 
claimed he could make his hens moult at any time of the year and 
therefore he could also, by controlling the moult, make his hens 
lay at any time of the year. His plan was to starve the hens 
and so stop their laying and when they had stopped for a week or 
two he fed them highly with fattening food. This he s/aid made 
them moult and drop their feathers very quickly so that in a few 
days the hens would be almost nude and the new feathers would 
come in very rapidly. His theory was that when hens sit for three 
weeks on eggs and raise a brood of chickens they pioult quickly 
because they grow thin during incubation, and when they have the 
rich feed which is given to the little chicks it makes them shed their 
feathers and assists the moult. 

His theory sounded very ])lausible and I decided if he could do it 
I could also and tried. I discovered the New Yorker was only part- 
ly right in his deductions and that it does not pay to force Nature 
out of season. 

The following year I was much more successful for I only at- 
tempted to "assist" Nature and not to "force" her. I did not try 



THE MOULTINiG SEASON 77 

to make the hens moult in June, but waited till nearer to the nat- 
ural time of the moult, that is, until August. I then put the hens 
on green food. I know that i-s hard to get at that time but I had 
lawn clippings, vegetables and melons, or even alfalfa hay cut in 
the clover cutter and soaked for some hours in water, and I dis- 
pensed with all the grain and meat. I kept them on this green food 
for about three weeks until their avoirdupois was considerably 
lower and most of them had stopped laying for a week. 

Dipping Fowls 

Meanwhile during their fast I saw that they were entirely clean 
from lice, either by keeping them well dusted with insect powder or 
by giving them a good warm bath in warm soap suds, rinsing them 
in a two per cent solution of carbolic acid or water and creolin or 
the kerosene emulsion. I have tried all of these with good success. 

This washing seems to loosen the feathers and will clean the 
fowls of lice, if lice are left on the fowls at moulting time they eat 
little holes in the tender sprouting feathers and these little holes in 
the web of the feather will certainly bring a "cut" from the judge 
in the show-room, and for the whole year will tell the tale of care- 
less handling by the owners. In washing or dipping fowls for lice 
there are two things to be remembered: First, do it on a bright, 
warm, sunny morning, so the fowls will have time to get thorough- 
ly dry before sundown, and, secondly, see that every feather is 
thoroughly soaked. If you skip a feather a louse will take refuge 
on it and commence to breed again as soon as the hen is dry. If 
there are any lice the disinfectant in the bath will kill them and 
the warm suds also loosen the nits of the head lice. Those lice lay 
two silvery, white nits at the shaft of the feather and it is difficult 
to get them off. 

Mature hens which are fed sparingly for about two weeks and 
then receive a rich nitrogenous ration, moult more rapidly and with 
more uniformity and enter the cold weather of Avinter in bett.er con- 
dition than the fowls fed continuously during the moulting period 
on an &^g producing ration. 

What to Feed 

It is largely a question of what not to feed as well as how little 
to give the birds you wish to moult early. There is one line of 
foods that you may feed in unlimited quantities, and that is the 
green vegetable, the waste, small beets and thinnings of the garden 
rows can be- supplied every day. My own plan in the days when 
I had small ungrassed yards, was to give full quantities of lawn 
clippings, putting them into the yards an hour before dark. This 
gave the birds time to fill up at night and yet the uneaten clippings 
would be still fresh in the early morning. If you have had no ex- 
perience in the use of lawn grass you will be surprised to see how 
much a few hens will eat. If your hens have very large yards with 
fruit trees to supply some falling apples or pears, the birds will do 
very well without other food. We are inclined to over feed our 



78 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

birds with grain in the warm weather and, unless the food is really 
much less than usual, you will fail in getting an early moult. 

This low feeding or starving process as it is called by many, is 
the important factor in the forced moult. Unless you really do this 
in good shape the birds will continue to lay and will shed their 
feathers in mid-autumn. 

Handle your birds on the roost to test their weight. They must 
be thin in body, yet good in color of comb and wattles. I find that 
birds take from fourteen to twenty-one days to get real thin. You 
will notice as you put this plan into practice that the egg yield will 
drop ofif until no eggs are being layed ; that the birds are on the run 
all the day long, coming to meet you at any point of the fence you 
may approach. The birds show that they miss some of their usual 
food. This thinning will do no harm to the birds ; in fact it adds to 
the health of the birds for months to come. 

The Full Ration 

When the birds have lost all superfluous flesh, when the eggs 
have ceased to appear for a week, feed them good, full rations of 
growiuig foods. Now is when you add meat, beef scraps, green 
bone, cornmeal, and linseed meal. You can give them a morning 
meal of two parts cornmeal ; three parts bran, one part beef scrap. 
At noon feed a small handful of wheat or barley to every bird and 
at night a full feed of wheat or corn. Do not neglect to furnish full 
supplies of green food and vegetables all the fall. 

The change from the low feed to the full rations will be followed 
by the rapid dropping of feathers. The feathers will fall off all over 
the birds so that many of them will be almost naked. This result 
will be seen in most of the birds. A few will fail to respond, more 
if you do not follow the plan as outlined. 

Keep the full feed up until the birds get the new coat of feathers 
and begin to lay a few eggs. Then feed them as you do the fully 
mature pullets; avoid feeding of heating foods (corn and corn pro- 
ducts) lest you start another moult in the late autumn. 

The forced moult is ONLY^ FOR MATURED FOWLS, or 
fowls that are over a year old. You must not starve the pullets. 
You must keep them growing. They will stand more heating food 
than hens. Let the pullets do most of your winter laying, but do 
not neglect anything that will induce the older birds to give you a 
good share in the profits of winter eggs. 

To sum up the whole matter in a few words, if you want to has- 
ten the moult, do not try the experiment with all your fowls, but 
take a few, separate them from the others and about the middle 
or end of August, commence to shorten their food. Y'^ou can do this 
suddenly, giving them only green food and all the green feed they 
want. Secondly, keep this green feed up for two or three weeks, 
or at least one week after they have stopped laying. Thirdly, the 
green food should be clover, lawn-clippings, alfalfa hay cut in a 
clover cutter and soaked in water; beet tops, cabbage, lettuce, etc. 
Fourthly, after the three weeks' fast, feed rich food, fattening food, 
sunflower seeds, kaffir corn, wheat, barley, oats and meat. Fifthly, 



THE MOULTING SEASON 



79 



when they begin to lay on this food, which they will do in about a 
month when they have completed their coat, gradually change the 
food, taking away the corn and its products, and the linseed meal, 
and anything that would be very fattening. 

Color of Feathers and Skin 

The feeding of the fattening foods adds heat to the body, fever 
our 'grandmothers called it, and this fever seems to loosen the 
feathers all at once — just what we want — and they fall so quickly 
that the hens are almost nude. Then is the time for care in feeding 
if you have exhibition stock, for I am certain color can be greatly 
controlled by food. 

Now, I know by my own experience that yellow corn will give 
yellow feathers (brassy feathers) to white fowls when freely fed; 
that cottonseed meal will have the same effect, for that is what we 
add to the fattening food the last week to give the yellow tint to 
the skin. I know that iron in the drinking water has the same effect 
with white fowls. With colored fowls, such as Brown Leghorns 
or Partridge fowls or Buffs the iron and the corn will intensify and 
make more brilliant and bright their colors. 

The fowls that are making their new coats, the coats that have 
to last the hens a year, all need plenty of 'green food and grain. The 
white fowls instead of yellow corn, should have oats, hulled oats 
are best, but if you cannot get hulled oats, soak the oats in scalding 
water so the hulls will be softened. Hulled oats may appear to be 
more expensive than the unhulled, but there is so much waste, so 
much indigestible fiber in the unhulled oats, that I decided that it 
was more profitable to feed the hulled oats. For those who are feed- 
ing cockerels which they want to exhibit in the winter; for the 
white or black and white, give them shade, plenty of shade, for our 
California sun will dry out the yellow; cut off all the yellow corn 
and all cottonseed meal ; feed oats, wheat, barley grit, charcoal and 
have granulated bone always before them. For the colored fowls 
add linseed meal to the ration. It will deepen and brighten the 
colors. 





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Value of Economy 



The old saying "a penny saved is a penny earned" may well ap- 
ply to the poultry business. To make money in the business, one 
must practice economy in every direction. 

Economy in Grain 

p'irst : Economy in buying the food. This is very important. The 
available grains vary in different places in price ; in some localities, 
for instance, barley is cheaper than wheat, then utilize barley ; that 
is to say if there is a decided difference in the oost, remembering 
that barley has a husk on it, which is indigestible fiber, and that 
fowls do not like it as well as wheat, although they eat it readily if 
rolled or soaked or sprouted, and the analysis shows the same nutri- 
tive ratio as wheat. Again in some places, oats can be obtained 
very cheaply, and these are a most valuable grain for feeding and 
building up large, sturdy frames in the young fowls, promoting egg 
laying and inducing fertility in the eggs. I have great faith in 
oats — it is good for man, beast and bird, but the husk is the diffi- 
culty there. The oats should be scalded or clipped, or better still, 
hulled to make them thoroughly available. In Oregon and Wash- 
ington, oats are less expensive than in the south, and therefore 
should be freely used there. By commencing the use of them early, 
the chicks will be vigorous and of large frame. 

Then again rice, rice hulls and rice bran are cheap in certain 
localities, such as in San Francisco and Seattle, where large quanti- 
ties are imported and cleaned, and these can be had very cheaply 
and utilized either in the dry or wet mash. In other places where 
beans and peas are grown in quantities, the refuse of these, wdiich 
is not worth marketing, can be used most advantageously. 

Broom-corn seed is a most excellent food and costs very little. 
I had in Oklahoma many tons of this, to which the fowls had free 
access and with green growing winter wheat, a little milk and table 
scraps, they layed all through the moult and through the winter, not- 
withstanding the blizzards and zero weather. Nothing seemed to 
stop their laying, and I attributed it to the broom-corn seed. Sor- 
ghum seed is equally good. 

Another little economy I found quite good among the little chick- 
ens w^as buying dry or stale bread frjom the bakeries at 25c a sack 
weighing 25 pounds. This I took home, cut same in slices and dried 
in the sun or in the oven, ground in the grist mill and used either 
moistened or dry, for .chickens, turkeys and ducks. 

Economy in Vegetables 

Then, again, there are the various vegetables, many of which can 
be had for almost nothing. There are "small potatoes." It general- 
ly raises a smile to talk of these, but they make a most excellent 
addition and variety to the fowls' bill of fare. Small raw potatoes 



VALUE O'F ECONOMY 8i 

can be chopped up in the chopping bowl in a few minutes, also tvir- 
nips, carrots and onions, and the outer leaves of cabbage, cauli- 
flower or celery. 1 bought the largest chopping, or butter bowl, I 
could find, and a double bladed chopping knife, and used it every- 
day, especially for the little chickens and turkeys. Small potatoes, 
turnips and carrots can be boiled, mashed, mixed with bran and 
blood-meal, or with milk, and make a good variety in the diet. If 
you have other vegetables to spare, such as beets, cucumbers, pump- 
kins, etc., and find the fowls do not at first like them, chop some up 
and mix bran with them and soon the hens will acquire a liking for 
them. 

Another economy is using the leaves which fall from alfalfa hay. 
When the hay-mow begins to get empty, sweep up the leaves and 
put them in a box or sack to mix in either the dry or wet mash. I 
used to try to keep the last two bales of the alfalfa hay, as the balers 
would sweep up the leaves and put them in these last two and this 
was just what I wanted for my hens. Sometimes I soaked the 
leaves and fed them at noon, keeping the alfalfa tea to mix in the 
mash with potatoes and bran or whatever I was feeding. I always 
said the alfalfa tea was as good as beef tea. There are many ways 
of economizing in the feed. 

Economy in Labor 
Another thing to economize is labor. I know many a farmer's 
busy wife will agree with me in this. I found the dry feed a great 
saving of time and strength. It was much less labor to carry around 
to my many pens of fowls buckets full of dry food nicely mixed in 
the proper proportions and pour it into a, box, or trough or hopper 
and let the hens eat it dry, instead of laboriously mixing it wi'th 
water. Before trying the dry feed, I had so many hens that I had 
a large trough made, like a plasterer's trough, and I used to mix 
and turn the mash with a spade or hoe and then fill those large 
buckets full and put them on a child's express wagon to pull out to 
the pens. This was quite hard work and I hailed with joy the easier 
task of carrying the lighter buckets of dry food. I found, too, that 
it saved time to mix up the food by the sack full or bin full, then all 
that was required was to dip up a bucket full for each pen. I showed 
this plan to a friend of mine and later had a letter from her telling 
me it was a great comfort, for all she had to do was to send her Jap 
boy out to that certain box or bin and tell him to feed that ; she 
knew he could not make a mistake for it was ready mixed. 

Economy in Water 

Another economy: Have a water faucet in each pen. This may 
seem like an expense at first, but it will pay in the end, for fresh 
water is as important as good food, and if it re(|uires but a turn of 
the faucet the hens are sure to be amply supplied. At one ranch 
where there was an abundance of water, I saw a small fountain 
which ran into a basin and that in turn overflowed into some cobble- 
stones and a drain, so that the hens had always fresh water without 
drawina: on either the strength or time of their owner. 



82 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

I would, however, caution chicken raisers against allowing the 
water to run in a stream from pen to pen, as that may carry infec- 
tion, especially the infection of colds and roup. One gentleman 
who had 3000 fowls told me that letting the water run in a small 
stream through his pens, had ruined him in the chicken business. 
One pen at the top of the hill got roup, and the infection was carried 
through to all of them. In Kansas one of the worst outbreaks of 
chicken cholera came from a creek. All the farms on that creek 
lost all, or nearly all their chickens, from drinking contaminated 
water. A: faucet in every yard would be cheaper in the end than an 
outbreak of roup or cholera. 

Economy in Fencing 
Economy in fencing came in very handily one summer. I found 
I could make a very good temporary chicken-wire fence with posts 
50 feet apart by "darning" in a lath every eight feet or so, passing 
the lath in and out of the wire meshes before putting up the wire. 
This keeps the wire stretched and when taken down it can simply 
be rolled up and used over and over again, keeping the lath in it 
ready for the next time. I found chicken wire and lath quite an 
economy. I made cat and hawkproof little pens of this. Bought 
a bundle of six foot lath, some two- feet chicken wire and made 
most useful little panels six feet long with the laths, stretching the 
chicken wire on them and tacking it down with two-pointed tacks. 
I wired or tied the panels at the corners and had a larger panel go 
over the top made of six foot wire. I did not have to kill any cats 
or have fusses with the neighbors. The little panels were untied 
and piled up for the winter time and put in the barn, coming out 
almost as good as new the next season. They were cheap, light, 
easily handled and very satisfactory. 

Beware of Spoiled Food 

It is poor economy to buy spoiled grain of any kind. The best is 
none too good and anything that is spoiled is very apt to brim'g in 
disease. Wheat or any grain that has been moistened will develop 
fungoid growth ; smutty wheat, etc., is almost poisonous to fowls, 
while, of course, we know that there is no grain that so nearly 
approaches the analysis of an egg as does wheat, when it is good. 
Corn, likewise, if it has been dampened, will commence to ferment 
and that will disagree with fowls. At one time there was a fire at a 
flour mill in Los Angeles. A great deal of the spoiled wheat was 
sold for chicken feed. "Anything was good enough for chickens," 
was the cry, and hundreds of chickens lost their lives from that 
wheat. The owners of the fowls thought it was chemicals that had 
been used in suppressing the fire, but it was nothing but water, 
some of the firemen told me, that had been used for extinguishing 
the fire. The dampened wheat became musty and mouldy and it 
was that which killed the chickens. Again in using beef-scraps, 
meat meal, blood meal or animal meal, be careful to buy the best 
you can get, and keep it carefully away from any dampness. 
Dampened or spoilt animal food is poisonous to the chickens and 



VALUE OF ECONOMY 83 

many a fowl has died from ptomaine poisoning from using spoiled 
animal food. One of the greatest economies is to buy in large 
quantities. 

Most Suitable Green Foods 

Whilst we are on the subject of economy we must not forget the 
two green foods that are the most suitable for fowls — clover and 
alfalfa. 

Let those who are living on a town lot ha\e a clover lawn ; clover 
requires less water than blue-grass or any lawn grass in this cli- 
mate, and is easily grown when once it is properly started. The 
lawn clippings are just the right length for green food and if neces- 
sary, the hens can be turned out on to the lawn two hours before 
sunset, and will then busy themselves nipping ofif the clover leaves ; 
they will not have time or inclination to do damage by scratching. 
A run on the lawn before bedtime is a wonderful tonic for chickens 
that are yarded closely all the day. 

Every farm should have an alfalfa patch, if not a good big field 
of alfalfa, and no chicken ranch is complete without one, for the 
youngsters should have a good alfalfa run to properly develop them. 

Alfalfa is a legume; is rich in nitrogen and enriches the land upon 
which it is grown. It is the best green feed next to clover for the 
hens or cows, and the hens love it. It is equally good for ducks and 
turkeys. The question of economy of labor is a very serious mat- 
ter in poultry raising, and by having a good alfalfa patch upon 
which the hens may be turned several hours daily, the labor of cut- 
ting and preparing green food for them is eliminated and will prove 
a great economy. 

Hens that have an abundance of alfalfa will lay eggs with very 
rich colored yolks and these eggs are usually fertile and produce 
healthy, vigorous offspring. An alfalfa range insures health, a good 
digestion and to growing chicks, a large frame. In buying a chick- 
en ranch, one of the important questions is "will the land grow 
alfalfa?" Is there sufficient water to raise a good crop of alfalfa? 

Alfalfa meal, or as it is sometimes called, Calfalfa, has been suc- 
cessfully used for hens. This is alfalfa hay ground up finely to 
form a meal. I have used this for several years and I find it some- 
times good and sometimes bad. The analysis of it made by the 
University of California shows the protein content to be very high, 
and the nutritive ratio to be 1 :3.3. This is the good meal. The 
poor meal contains too much fiber, and, as Prof. Rice of Cornell 
University remarked, "It was better for stuffing a bed than a hen." 
It all depends upon the quality of the alfalfa. Sometimes it is left 
Until it is too old or is not properly cured, and is almost valueless; 
at other times it may have been dampened and become musty. 
When this is the case, it will disagree with the fowls and glv-e them 
diarrhoea. To test it pour boiling water upon it and if it smells 
sweet, like hay, it is all right.. If there is a musty, mildewy smell, 
discard it. 



Preserving Eggs 



Of twenty methods of preserving" eggs tested in Germany, the 
three which proved the most effective were coating the eggs with 
vaseline, preserving them in lime water, and preserving them in 
water-glass. The conclusion was reached that the last was prefer- 
able, because varnishing the eggs with vaseline takes considerable 
time and treating them with the lime water may give them a dis- 
agreeable taste. These drawbacks are not to be found with eggs 
preserved in water-glass, which unquestionably is the best pre- 
servative yet discovered. The most difficult point probably in the 
use of water-glass for preserving eggs is its tendency to vary 
in quality. As a matter of fact there are two or three kinds of 
water-glass, and in addition to the fact that the buyer does not al- 
ways have a distinct idea as to what he wants, the local druggist 
may not know all about it, or he may not know which kind is best 
for preservative purposes. The main use of these preparations for 
years has been the rendering of fabrics non-inflammable. This use 
in the Royal Theatre of Munich has rendered the place fire-proof 
by its use as a varnish in the fresco work, woodwork, scenery and 
curtains. It is also used for hardening stone and protecting it from 
the action of the weather. It was thus used many years ago, to ar- 
rest the decay of the stones in the British Houses of Parliament. 
The use of this medium for egg preservation is comparatively new, 
especially in this country, and it is not to be wondered at that' 
dealers do not always supply just what is wanted. 

Different Names for Water Glass 

If we used the term soluble glass or "dissolved glass" in prefer- 
ence to either water-glass or silicate of soda, it might better de- 
scribe just what we want, although one of the other names might 
be preferable when ordering of the druggist. This term expresses 
exactly what the material is. When we buy it by the pint or quart, 
we get dissolved glass. When we buy it dry, we get a soluble glass 
powder sometimes like powdered stone, sometimes white and 
glassy as to its particles. The powdered forms are supposed to 
dissolve in boiling water, but they do not dissolve readily, and must 
often be kept boiling for some hours. 

Water-glass is made by melting together pure quartz and a caus- 
tic alkali, soda or potash, and sometimes a little charcoal. 

Several of our Experiment Stations have made some rather ex- 
haustive experiments with this dissolved glass in preserving eggs. 
The reports are, without exception, in favor of it. No other pre- 
servative is reported as being equal to this one. The stuff' is invari- 
ably described as a thick or jelly-like liquid, and the proportions 
recommended are one pint of the silicate of soda to nine pints of 
water, although the Rhode Island Station reports experiments in 
which as low as two per cent of water-glass was used with favor- 



I'RESERVING EGGS 85 

able results. This as done to find out how little could be used, but 
this small proportion was not recommended. Further trials may 
show that less than nine to one may be reliable. 

Directions for Use 

The directions for use are : Use pure water which has been 
thoroughly boiled and cooled. To each nine quarts of this water 
add one quart of water-glass. Pack the eggs in the jar and pour 
the solution over them. The solution may be prepared, placed in 
the jar and fresh eggs added from time to time until the jar is filled, 
but care must be used to keep fully two inches of water-glass solu- 
tion to cover the eggs. Keep the eggs in a cool place and the jar 
covered to prevent evaporation. A cool cellar is a good place in 
which to keep the eggs. 

If the eggs be kept in a too warm place the silicate will be de- 
posited and the eggs will not be properly protected. Do not wash 
the eggs before packing, for by so doing you will injure their keep- 
ing qualities. Probably by dissolving the mucilaginous coating on 
the outside of the shell. For packing use onlv perfecth^ fresh eggs, 
for eggs that have already become stale cannot be preserved bv 
this or any other method, and one stale egg mav spoil the whole 
batch. 

I can speak from my own experience, for I have packed eggs in 
it for five years and shall do so again. We are fond of fresh eggs 
and use a great many, and I find it most convenient to have a jar 
or crock full of nice eggs always on hand. I have kept them my- 
self for eight months and have no doubt but that I could have pre- 
served them still longer had we not eaten them, for I found them 
to all appearances as fresh as if not over a week old. It costs about 
lyy cents per dozen to preserve them. 

The Kind of Vessels for Packing 

Prof. Ladd. of the North Dakota Agricultural Station,* spoke of 
receiving a few complaints that barrels were not proving satisfac- 
tory, the water-glass appearing to dissolve some product which de- 
posited on the eggs. He thinks this might be attributed to the 
presence of glue, which had been used as sizing for the barrels. In 
such instances, charring the barrel inside with thorough washing 
thereafter, is recommended. Altogether the preference seems to 
be for glass or stoneware vessels. 

Prof. Ladd's statement as to the satisfactory results of the water- 
glass method is very strong. He says: "This method has been 
tested in a commercial way, in nearly every state and part of our 
country, and we have not had to exceed eight adverse reprts." One 
of the stations afifirms that the failures reported are probably due 
to receiving water-glass of poor quality. 

It is also stated that these, like all preserved eggs, contain a lit- 
tle gas, and, when boiled, they will be likely to burst unless previ- 
ously pricked through the shell at the large end. 

As the entire processes of preservation are an efifort to fence out 
germs, the recommendation not to wash off the mucilaginous coat- 



86 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

ing which nature puts on the eggs, and also to use only boiled 
water, appear very logical. When we know just what we are aim- 
ing at, we are less likely to omit the little precautions which other- 
wise might seem like the whims of some mussy person. Too many 
people skip the essentials when trying to follow a formula. 

I have kept the eggs in tin receptacles, five gallon kerosene oil 
cans, and large lard pails. These kept the eggs perfectly, but after 
a time the water and silica of soda rusted them in spots and the red 
rust formed a sediment on the eggs. This did not injure them as 
far as I could see, except giving them a brownish tinge, and on 
asking the druggist, he said he did not see why the tin should not 
be used, as the silicate of soda comes from the East in tin cans. If 
tin is used, it is best not to paint the cans or oil them, as the soda 
has an affinity for oil and will eat through it and the oil or grease 
may impart a disagreeable flavor to the eggs. Remember the eggs 
must be absolutely fresh, for one bad Qgg may spoil the whole 
quantity in the receptable. 

Preserving in Lime 

The process of keeping them in lime-water is as follows: Slack 
four pounds of lime, then add four pounds of salt; add eight gal- 
lons of water. Stir and leave to settle. The next day stir again. 
After the mixture has settled the second time, draw off the clear 
liquid. Take two ounces each of baking soda, cream of tartar, salt 
petre, and a little alum. Pulverise and mix ; dissolve in two quarts 
of boiling water. Add this to the lime water. Put the eggs in a 
stone jar, small end down, one layer on top of another, and pour 
on the solution. Set the jar away in a cool place. This method is 
quite satisfactory, but not so good as the water-glass as the eggs are 
liable to taste of the lime. 




White \%'yandotte Cockerel 



Capons 



"Does Caponizing- Pay?" ^^'e will consider the matter fully and 
.from different points of view. 

In Philadelphia and New York, in London and Paris, capons are 
considered a great delicacy, and as we in California become more 
metropolitan, capons will be more and more in demand. Eleven or 
twelve years ago when I had capons for sale I could not get more 
per pound for them than for the uncaponized fowls, as the An- 
gelenos had not been educated in taste to the excellency of capon 
meat. 

Capons are undoubtedly a more delicious dish at a year old than 
an uncaponized male bird of the same age. I had been led to sup- 
pose that a capon would be immensely heavier and larger than an 
uncaponized bird of the same age. This I found was not the case, 
the capons being rarely more than from half a pound to a pound 
heavier, if at all. My chief reason for caponizing was the desire to 
train capons for foster mothers of chicks. I wanted mothers that 
would not commence to lay as my hens did when the chickens were 
two or at most three weeks old and then desert them. In this I was 
thoroughly successful. The trained capon will mother chicks just 
as long as the chicks will stay with him, and after a little rest will 
take another brood and-mother it again, clucking to the chicks, feed- 
ing them, defending them, hovering them better than the hen. 

"Does caponizing pay?" Careful experiments have proved that 
the increase in weight is by no means so great as the public has 
been led to believe. It takes capons at least a month to suflficientl}' 
recover from the operation to catch up with their former mates in 
size and when they come to a marketable age they seldom weigh 
a pound more than the uncaponized birds of the same breeki and 
age. The gain, however, in price is in their favor for it alaout 
doubles that of the other. This sounds like a strong argument on 
the side of the capon, but again the cost of production is an essen- 
tial factor in the study of the question. It will cost as much to pro- 
duce a ten pound capon as to produce three or four young chicks 
of the same combined weight ; in fact with food at the present price 
I really think it will cost more. 

"Does caponizing pay?" I knew a lady about three years ago 
who sold four capons for sixteen dollars. She was so much en- 
couraged by this, for they averaged 38 cents a pound, that the fol- 
lowing season she drove around the country buying up little 
cockerels and caponizing them. She was very successful in operat- 
ing, rarely losing any, but as she only stayed in the business one 
year, I think she did not consider it very remunerative. 

Easy to Learn 

The art of caponizing is simple and easy to learn. In France 
the farmers' wives and daughters have done the caponizing for cen- 



88 MRS. liASLEVS POULTRY I'.OOK 

turies and practically without instruments except a sharp knife. In 
this country and age, we can buy a case of the best instruments, 
with full instructions for use, at low cost, and the Agricultural sta- 
tions of some states give free demonstration lessons to anyone 
within the state. TheRhode Island College gives lessons in capon- 
izing in connection Avith its poultry course and also sends out, free, 
a book of instructions. By following these instructions and ex- 
perimenting for the first tme on a dead chicken, any one that is deft 
can learn it". The operation is performed with apparently little pain 
to the subject and the minute the bird is released it will eat heartily 
and walk around as if nothing had occurred. 

In foreign countries the art of caponizing has been known and 
practiced for ages, yet it is not so common nor are capons so plenti- 
ful but that prices rule high and capons are considered the choicest 
of viands and above the reach of any except the rich. In this 
blessed country there is no reason why the producers of poultry 
should not feast upon capons, besides having the satisfaction of 
producing and marketing strictly high class poultry. 

Favorite Breeds for Capons 

In Xew England the favorite breeds for caponizing are the light 
r.rahmas and the Cochin and Brahma crosses. They are chosen on 
account of their large size and slow growth to maturity. The Ply- 
mouth Rocks follow, together with the Orpingtons and Wyan- 
dottes. The smaller breeds make, of course, much smaller 
capons, still they are popular in small families where large 
size is not required. I have personally caponized only my White 
Plymouth Rocks. Nothing could be better than capons of this 
breed. At nine or ten months of age they are in their prime and 
the juciness and flavor of their flesh is superb. 

Among the advantages of caponizing are, the birds may be kept 
together in large numbers, will not quarrel or fight, will not harass 
the hens and pullets, will not misuse the little chicks, bear crowd- 
ing and take on flesh more rapidly than cockerels. They make 
when trained most excellent mothers for little chickens, sheltering 
them under their long feathers and great wings. 

Best Time for Caponizing 

The best time for caponizing is in the early fall, for the reason 
that the heat of svmimer does not then retard recovery and also 
because the late (Jun.e hatched) cockerels are then of the best size. 

The best size is from two and a half to three pounds weight and 
this would be about the weight of June hatched chickens of the 
American breeds which if caponized in Septeiuber will be well 
grown and in good shape for marketing in March, the time of the 
highest prices. 

It is to the farmers, however, that the recommendation to capon- 
ize their cockerels for the family table should appeal most strongly, 
for they are the class that would be most benefited by having good 
capons to eat. It is a simple task to caponize forty or fiftv birds 



CAPONS 89 

and b}- that simple method a farmer can provide his family with 
dinners which will be the envy of his less fortunate friends. 

The question "Does caponizing pay" may be answered, "Some- 
times it does and sometimes it does not." 

Counting- the cost of the food for at least six or eight months, 
the cost of the operation, unless one can do it oneself, and the time 
and care during that time, also the space necessary which might be 
better occupied by pullets, we are apt to think that it does not pay. 

I hit again considering the high price obtainable, the peace and 
quietness of the poultry yard, and the excellence of the flesh, the 
ease wnth which the birds are fattened, and the growing demand 
— does it not pay? 

It is almost impossible to keep together anv number of male birds 
in their natural state after they reach a certain age, without a 
deterioration in the quality of the flesh, the color of the skin and the 
general market value of the birds as poultry. Caponizing, by do- 
ing away with all strife and worry, gives them a chance to turn the 
food consumed to flesh instead of expending it in the wear and tear 
of ceaseless fretting and action. 

There is a best time for operating, a best age and a best size. I 
have found the best age for caponizing to be about three months of 
age for the American breeds ; after the age of four months most 
young males of these breeds cease rapid flesh development, and the 
food they consume, that might be made into positive profit, results 
in little more than frame and ambition to whip some other bird ; 
while if they are caponized at the right age it makes it possible to 
keep them a sufficient length of time so that one can realize a gain 
from the work that goes into the hatching, feeding and care of the 
first four months of their life. Capons do not grow larger than 
cockerels until they are about six months of age. After this there 
comes a change in the capons, their combs do not develop, but their 
hackle and tail feathers grow long and beautiful. 

As a rule it is the later hatched chickens that should be capon- 
ized for the spring market. We all know that the.markets are flood- 
ed with chickens in the late summer and fall and that the low prices 
of poultry at that time return the raiser but very little prrofit. These 
somewhat late chickens if caponized in September will grow to a 
good size and be in the best market condition for the spring sea- 
son when the turkey market is on the wane, and this will bring the 
grower a handsome profit. 

Capons as Brooders 

Capons make excellent mothers when trained to it. Some breeds 
would probably make more affectionate and attentive foster mothers 
tlian others. I can personally answer for the Cornish Indian Games 
and Plymouth Rocks. I have also seen beautiful Brown Leghorn 
capons that had raised several broods of chickens. Cockerels 
hatched in November. December and January, make excellent ca- 
])ons for brooding. They should be caponized at about three months 
of age. Should be gently handled and never frightened, when they 
will iiecomc perfectly tame. The capon with its changed nature is 



90 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



even more timid than a hen or pullet, and for this reason should be 
separated from any of the older fowls and kindly treated. 

Capons should be trained at the age of about six months. They 
are easier to train at this age than at any other time, generally, but 
I have trained them at ten months of age. To train them, I keep 
the bird in solitary confinement for a fev^ days, placing him in a 
cracker box; place water, grit and sand in the box the same as 
though preparing for a hen and her brood. After two or three soli- 
tary nights and days I put two little chicks under him at night ; they 
snuggle up under him, and he is quite glad to have the little fel- 
lows for company. The next morning he will look a little surprised 
perhaps, but usually takes them immediately, and soon begins to 
cluck to them like an old hen. The following evening I put as many 
as I intend him to care for under him, and before going to bed at 
night, see that all the little fellows are under his sheltering feathers. 
My object in using a cracker box is that it is about the proper 
height to make it uncomfortable for the capon to stand upright and 
he will sit for comfort; the little chicks get closer and make friends 
quicker, and have an opportunity to nestle under the capon as they 
would a hen. This training should be done in pleasant weather, 
because the chicks will not be hovered at first as well by the capon 
as the hen, and I use only a few chicks the first time, because a 
young capon with his first brood does not hover them like a trained 
one. 

The Whiskey Treatment 

Hen hatched chicks take to a capon without any trouble, but 
chicks which have been several days in a brooder seem afraid of 
the capon, and instead of running to him to be hovered, huddle in a 
corner, so it is best to put them straight from the incubator under 
the capon. A writer on this subject says: "Should one of the 
capons pick the chicks I would take him out of the box and swing 
him around in a verticle circle at arms' length until he was sick, 
then put him back again. If he attempts the same thing again, I 
take a small glass syringe and inject about one tablespoonful of 
good whiskey into his crop through his mouth, and after this treat- 
ment he is pretty sure to take to the chicks. He becomes so docile 
that he allows the chicks to pick at his face and will not pick back 
at them. When you notice this, you can rest assured that he is on 
the right- road." 

I have never tried the whiskev treatment, and have never had anv 
difficulty in training a capon. Capons have proved far superior to 
hens in brooding chicks, in fact they excel all other methods, either 
natural or artificial. The hen, especially "bred-to-lay" strain, 
deserts her brood at too early an age, and some hens, especially 
the pullets, with a first brood, are often very stupid at caring for 
them, r have known a pullet to hover her chicks in a thunder 
storm in a gully where the water rushed until they were nearly all 
drowned. Pullets do not seem to have sense enough to "come in 
out of the rain," while a good capon, when once he has been taught 
his way home, will bring the little ones to shelter without any 



CAPONS 91 

trouble. The capon will defend his little brood most vigorously 
against cats, dogs or any animal. He seems to develop all the latent 
parental affection and lavishes it on his young charges as if his one 
and only object in life was to care for them. 

When Changing Broods 

When the chicks are old enough to take care of themselves, be- 
fore entrusting another brood to his care, he should have a rest of 
at least two weeks, especially if the next brood is to be of another 
color. During the two weeks rest he will forget the color of the 
chicks he had and will not be so apt to object to the new ones. We 
all know that hens will sometimes object to chicks of a different 
color and will oftentimes kill them. When once trained, a capon is 
very little trouble and will care for brood after brood without any 
more training than I have mentioned. Capons can be kept over 
several seasons. I have heard of some being used for eight years, 
but mine were usually fattened and made a toothsome dish after 
two years' service. 

It is not difficult to leain how to caponize. The tools or instru- 
ments necessary are to be found at the poultry supply houses. The 
price for a set of instruments is from $2.50 to about $4.00, largely 
depending upon the case in which they are contained. The poultry 
supply houses have books of instruction for caponizing, and at 
some of them you can learn the name of persons who, for a small 
sum, will caponize for others. It would be a good plan for several 
neighbors to join together and have the person caponize 50 or 100 
in the same day. In this way, it would make the price lower. 

Capons are not much larger than cockerels of the same breed 
and age. The difference is in the table quality of the flesh. It is 
juicier and more tender, just as steer beef is superior to any other 
beef. 




Black Orpini^on Cockerel 



92 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 
DRYING BOX 




A box is often used like the picture for drying- fowls after their 
bath. It is heated by a lamp and current of hot air; is considered 
very effective and enables one to operate in a cooler room — a great 
advantage to the operator. 




Kt'iHly lor the <«liow 



Getting Ready for the Show 



To wash and dry four fowls is a good day's work for anyone ; 
even an expert. I have washed fowls for every show at which 
[ have exhibited : the last time a helper and I washed thirty- 
two, so I speak from actual experience. In washing the 
fowls I used four tubs instead of three ; the first tub was the clothes 
boiler because I could make the suds deeper in that than in a tub. 
The suds must be made with ivory soap, or white castile, and be as 
warm as one can bear one's hand in. I used a good soft flannel 
wash cloth and holding the fowl's shanks between the fingers of 
my left hand, immerse it, wetting it thoroughly to the skin, using 
the flannel to scrub and wash it most thoroughly till every feather 
was perfectly clean : it takes about half an hour in this first tub 
and two persons are better than one, as every feather should be 
gone over carefully and should look pure white. When the bird 
is clean, lift it out. and whilst one holds it let the other gentily pass 
the hands down the back to squeeze the suds out. Then immerse 
in the second tub of warm water and with a clean sponge wash 
and rinse it again ; taking it out, squeeze the water out, put it into 
tub three, in which the water is a little cooler, and finally when all 
the soap is thoroughly rinsed out, put the bird into the last tub, in 
which there is cold water with a little blueing in it, as much as one 
would use for clothes. If the soap has not been rinsed out the blue- 
ing will stick in places and the fowl will look worse than if it had 
been left dirty. 

Taking the fowl out of the last water, I ran my hand gently down 
its back to slightly squeeze the water out. then wiped it with dry 
linen towel, and then made it flap its wings by throwing it in the 
air whilst holding its legs. The room has to be very warm — 110 
degrees Fahrenheit, and must be kept at that heat until the fowls 
are dry. If they are allowed to dry in a cool room the feathers stick 
together, but in a hot room they become fluflfy and beautiful. The 
fowls must be washed in the morning, for it takes several hours for 
them to dry. After they are washed. I give them a quarter of a 
teaspoonful of red pepper mixed with a little butter to keep them 
from taking cold. I ]nit them in a coop with clean fresh white straw 
to dry them, and feed them dry grain. They should have grain as 
their jirincipal diet for two weeks before the show. 

Cleaning the Shanks 

The afternoon after having bathed the fowls in the morning, T 
commence with the first one that is dry. I first have a sharp pen 
knife, sharpen half a dozen matches to a point, spread a clean white 
cloth on my lap, sit down in my rocking chair near the kitchen 
window, my helper hands me the fowl, and I wrap the cloth round 
it, to prevent its flapping its wings. I then take a pointed match 
and. commencing at one toe, I clean under each scale, just as one 



94 MRS. BASLEY'.S POULTRY BOOK 

cleans one's finger nails, and gently, but firmly clean each one. 
As soon as the point gets worn off, I take another match. I have 
tried tooth picks, and finger nail cleaners, but found the matches 
the most satisfactory for the fowls and always handy. It takes 
from an hour to an hour and a half to clean every scale on a fowl's 
shanks and toes. After they are clean I either wash them in warm 
soap suds and wipe off without rinsing, or rub them over with a 
raw carrot (some say a potato will do but I have not tried it). 
This is to slightly moisten the scales, for by handling for over an 
hour they become hot and dry, and lose their luster. I know a 
man who every day for a week rubbed his cockerel's shanks with 
a carrot, and they shone as if newly varnished, and were a beautiful 
yellow. Moisture keeps the shanks yellow, but the adobe and 
alkali on some farms bleaches and ruins them. For those unfor- 
tunate enough to be on adobe soil, ! would advise them to wash 
and clean the fowls' legs a month or two before the show and 
grease them slightly with olive oil, lard or butter, rubbing it well 
in and wiping ofif. Do this every week ; this will counteract the 
bad effects of the adobe soil, and your fowls will come out all right. 
''Lots of trouble," you say. Yes ! but it pays. If you don't use 
every effort to win, some other person will, and the winner de- 
serves to win. 

Without Washing 
Now I will let you into a secret. This washing of the fowls, 
when well done (and it must be well done or not at all) makes them 
look beautiful, there is no doubt about that,, but it is very trying 
upon the person who does it ; many a bad cold have I taken from 
being overheated, spending four hours of a morning in a room with 
temperature at 110 degrees Fahrenheit. It is also very trying on 
the fowls, and they sometimes take cold ; for this reason, as a pre- 
ventive I administer the red pepper. 

The secret is a way of cleaning the fowls without washing them : 
Give them a large scratching pen under shelter, or in the house, 
keep this filled twelve inches deep in dry, clean wheat hay for a 
month before the show, adding more wheat hay every few days. 
Feed them all the grain in this. They will almost bury themselves 
in the straw, and it will clean them wonderfully, the straw sliding 
down their backs keeps up a continual wiping down and polishing 
off, and at the end of a month they are glossy and clean. You must 
be very extravagant with the wheat straw or hay, frequently re- 
newing or adding to it so as to have it clean and deep. In this 
way you can make the fowls clean themselves. Of course the feet 
and legs must be washed and scrubbed with a toothbrush and good 
warm suds, and then cleaned as I have described with a pointed 
match under each scale. 



Turkeys and How to Raise Them 



Turkeys have been called the "farmers' friend," and there is no 
doubt that turkey raising on a small scale is more profitable than 
any other branch of the poultry industry and that turkeys will 
bring larger cash returns than any other stock upon the farm. 
They cost very little to raise, they eat the waste grain in the fields 
and barnyard, besides the seed of many harmful weeds. They 
consume an immense number of grasshoppers, grubs, worms and 
insects which would otherwise greatly injure the farmers' crops, 
and they are not difficult to raise if they are not overfed. 

Oine writer asks if chick feed is a proper and safe food for little 




A Mag^nificent White Holland Tom 



96 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

turkeys, and another requests me to tell her exactly how I feed 
and care for the little turkeys. 

Chick food is neither a safe nor a proper food for little turkeys, 
althoug-h it is a most excellent food for little chicks. In fact, you 
mav be sure of success when you feed it to chickens and failure if 
you feed it to. turkeys. Later on I will try to explain this. 

Now, as to my way of rearing- turkeys. I am glad to give it be- 
cause now I raise every turkey that is hatched barring accidents, 
as some will drown in the cows' trough and occasionally one or two 
get stepped on, or the door blows on one or the puppy worries an- 
other. None die from disease. 

I do not pretend to say that mine is the only way but I do say 
that not only do I succeed in raising turkeys, but those who have 
followed my directions were as successful as I have been, and 
those that met with failure did not follow my plans. I have been 
criticised as too fussy and particular about little details, but I think 
it pays to take good care of the little things for a few weeks, for 
turkeys are delicate only when they are little, and if properly cared 
for then will be strong and hardy when they mature. 

}, Grandmother's Recipe 

At my grandmother's the recipe for feeding little turkeys was as 
follows: "Leave them in the nest twenty-four hours or until the 
mother turkey brings them ofif ; then give them only coarse sand 
and water to drink. Meanwhile put some fresh eggs in cold water 
to boil ; let them boil for half an hour ; then chop them up, egg- 
shells and all, quite fine ; add an equal amount of dry bread crumbs, 
and always, always, sortie green food chopped up finely." 

Lettuce, dandelion or dock were the green foods at grandmother's 
and' the explanation given me was that if they are fed without hav- 
ing green at every meal they soon become constipated, then get 
sick and die. The secret of her success was the tender green food 
and the grit, a pinch of coarse sand being sprinkled over the food 
of ^ach meal. As the little turkeys grew, a little cracked, wheat and 
later whole wheat was added to their food. That was the only 
grain given. This was grandmother's recipe for raising turkeys. 

The, way I feed and have fed for years is as follows: When the 
little turkeys are twenty-four hours old I put freshly-laid eggs into 
cold water and boil them for half an hour; chop them up fine, shell 
and all ; add equal parts of bread crumbs ; feed dry. taking away 
what they leave, feeding the mother separately. 

'I^ie next day I feed the same, adding very finely chopped lettuce 
or dandelion leaves or green young mustard leaves and, tender 
young onion tops. This is their breakfast and supper. For dinner 
they have a little curd made from clabber milk, cottage cheese 
some call it. In a few days I add cracked or whole wheat to their 
supper and if I am short of bread crumbs I add rolled breakfast 
oats to the e^g and bread crumbs. I always chop up an onion a 
day wi'jth'.the es!;g and bread crumbs unless the onions tops are 
very young and tender. Onions are an excellent tonic for the liver 
and' kidneys and prevent worms and cure colds ; so I use onions 



TURKEYS AND HOW TO RAISE THE.M 97 

freely both for turkeys and chickens. In a few days I commence 
to add wheat to their food and at two weeks of ag'e I gradually 
arrive at giving- them wheat and rolled oats for breakfast ; in the 
middle of the forenoon a head of lettuce to tear up and eat ; at noon 
cottage cheese, and about four or five o'clock their supper of egg, 
bread crumbs or rolled oats, lettuce and always the chopped up 
onion. 

I give them clean water three times a day in a drinking fountain 
or if I have not a fountain I make one out of a tomato can. Make 
a nail hole in the can about half an inch from the top, then till the 
can up to the hole with water, invert a saucer over it, and holding 
the saucer tightly to it, turn it over quickly. This makes a good 
fountain for the water will come slowly out of the nail hole into 
the saucer. I give the turkeys a similar fountain of skim milk, 
also. A word about the cottage cheese. I am very particular in 
making it not to allow the clabber milk to become hot. I use either 
a thermometer, letting the heat only come to 98 degrees, or I keep 
my finger in the milk and as soon as it feels pleasantly warm I take 
the milk ofif the fire, pour the curd into & cheese cloth bag and leave 
it to drain. If the milk scalds or boils the curd will be tough, hard 
like rubber and indigestible enough to kill turkeys or chickens. 

Overfed Little Ones 

When I lived in the home of the wild turkey, Oklahoma and 
Kansas, I learned much about the care of tame turkeys. There 
"corn is king" but I was cautioned never to give corn to the young 
turkeys until after they "sport the red." That is until their heads 
and wattles become red, which happens at about three months of 
age. For it was said that corn always sours on their stomachs. 
It was there I heard of a man who brought up his turkeys on 
nothing but onion tops, curd and grit, and they did well. 

One of my experiences in the land of the wild turkey may serve 
as a warning to others. I had a good old BufT Cochin hen who 
was mothering a brood of nice little turkeys. She was most as- 
siduous in her care of them ; she clucked to them all day ; called 
them up to eat all the time and it was surprising to see how those 
little fellows grew, wdien one after another they began to droo]) 
and die. till only one little fellow was left. The other turkeys under 
turkey mothers were doing well, so I took the lone little one one 
night and put him under a mother turkey out in the meadow and 
saved his life. The old hen had over-fed the others. Chicken hens 
are too anxious to feed the little turkeys. They scratch for them, 
coax them to eat, and the little turkeys are such greedy, voracious 
little things that they over-eat and in consequence die. I much 
prefer to bring up little turkeys under a turkey hen or even in a 
brooder, rather than under a chicken hen. The best wa}^ of manag- 
ing a hen is to keep her in a coop letting the little turkevs run out- 
side or else tie the hen under a tree by her leg. I only feed the 
little poults three times a day just what they will eat up clean in 
ten minutes. With a turkey hen I can leave wheat in a trough al- 
ways accessible and she will never over-feed the voung. The turkev 



98 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

mother will take a few mouthsful herself and then move slowly 
and deliberately away and her babies will follow her, having only 
taken one or two grains each. Tlhis is more like the nature of the 
wild turkey and the nearer to nature one can keep in raising tur- 
keys the better will be our success. 

Nature's wild turkeys are only hatched in the spring when there 
are grubs and worms in abundance, with plenty of green grass and 
tender leaves and no grain but what is sprouting, and above all 
Nature never mixes mashes to turn sour and ferment on the little 
stomachs. The hard-boiled egg and the curd takes the place of the 
bugs and the grubs, for we cannot supply the turkeys with anything 
like the amount of grasshoppers, grubs, worms, larvae of insects 
which Nature provides in the haunts of the wild turkeys. Another 
lesson we may learn from Nature's book : Wild turkeys are only 
to be found where there are springs and streams of pure water and 
they never wander away from the water. Give the young turkeys 
plenty of clean, pure water to drink. 

There are two chief causes of mortality in little turkeys — lice 
and over feeding. Before giving the little turkeys to the mother to 
care for, dust them well with "buhach," and continue to do this once 
a week until they are too large to handle. Look for lice on the 
head and on the quill feathers of the wing and rub the powder 
well into them. Lice and over-feeding kill thousands of little tur- 
keys . Overfeeding kills more than lice and if it does not kill them 
it stunts their growth, and unfortunately until they begin to die 
at about six weeks of age, one scarcely realizes that they have been 
overfed. 

Little turkeys have voracious appetites, and if allowed to do 
so will eat too much and it only takes a few weeks for them to eat 
themselves into their graves. If they hunt for their food as the 
wild turkeys do they take it leisurely, just what they can easily 
digest, exercising between each mouthful and just enough is di- 
gested and goes into the circulation to keep them healthy. I never 
feed little turkeys all they want, only what they need and I* always 
keep them a little hungry. 

Keep Liver Healthy 

I can tell you just how overfed turkeys will die. First they will 
walk slowly, lagging behind the others as if tired, then their wings 
will droop and they will look sleepy and will not eat, will look at 
the food as if they wanted it, but were too lazy to pick it up, then 
diarrhoea will set in, the dropping will become yellow and some- 
times green, and death will soon follow. If you hold a postmortem 
examination, as you should do over everything that dies in the 
chicken yard, you will find the liver of these little turkeys has yel- 
low or white spots on it, and on cutting into it you may find that 
these spots are small ulcers that extend through it. Sometimes 
these ulcers are quite offensive. This comes from over feeding 
which gives the liver more work than it can do and it breaks down. 

The liver is the largest organ in the turkey's body and it seems 
to be the most delicate. If you can keep that healthy you will have 



TURKEYS AND HOW TO RAISE THEM 99 

healthy turkeys. Onion and dandelion leaves are tonics for the 
liver and the green food keeps it healthy, whilst the animal food 
and a small amount of cereal will make the frame of the turkey. 

But suppose you should see one little turkey in the brood begin- 
ning to walk slowly, what should you do? I will tell you what I 
would do. I would catch that little turkey and give a Carter's 
Little Liver Pill and follow this the next day with a little Epsom 
salts for the whole flock and cut ofif some of the grain in the feed. 
You will probably save the flock, but they will be stunted in their 
growth, and their liver many months later, may break down from 
their being weakened by that first attack of liver trouble. 

Chick Feed for Turkeys 

Now, about the chick feed. It is composed of a number of differ- 
ent grains. Some of these grains are extremely difficult of digestion 
for turkeys. The cliief of th.ese are cracked corn, Kaffir corn, Eygp- 
tian corn, sorgum seed, millet, etc. I coiild scarcely believe this 
until I had ocular demonstration of it. Theni ! discovered that 
cracked corn did not commence to digest in the crop, as the gastric 
juice of the crop does not seem to have any influence on it. It 
passes through the crop and on through the procentriculus to the 
gizzard, arriving there hard and not in the least softened or digested 
and there it commences to ferment, causing diarrhoea or else pass- 
ing away without digesting. I am not scientific enough to know 
the reason of this nor why wheat should be softened in the crop and 
partly digested before reaching the gizzard, but I know that it is 
so. They told me in Kansas that corn soured on the turkeys' 
stomachs, but it does not exactly sour, it ferments — and there is 
where the trouble comes in. 

Sour milk is sour, but this is from lactic acid, and lactic acid 
seems beneficial to turkeys, whilst the souring of grains, bran, 
cereals of any kind, bread or corn meal is a ferment, and ferments 
are very injurious to fowls of all kinds and especially so to turkeys. 

Mrs. Charles Jones, the best authority on turkeys in the United 
States, agrees with me about feeding turkeys. She writes : 

"A diet of part corn agrees with chickens, but I have never yet 
fed corn in any form to young turkeys but that sooner or later they 
would give up the unequal contest. A little neighbor girl that had 
a great deal of the care of turkeys said the least little bit of corn 
meal makes them die. She had learned this by watching them as 
she fed them." 

1100 Gleaning Wheat 

It was my privilege to visit a turkey ranch in the San Joaquin 
Valley some time ago and what I say there made me wonder that 
there are so few large turkey ranches in California. 

There were over 1100 beautiful turkeys gleaning the wheat over 
many acres of stubble. These great turkeys had been hatched near 
the barn in shed-like coops, under turkey hens. They were kept 
m the yard until about five or six weeks old, when they were driven 
out with their mothers upon the wheat stubble to rustle for their 
living, to pick up the wheat that would otherwise be lost. All these 



lOo MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

turkeys roosted in the open air and to this and the simple life, work- 
ing for and finding their own living, may be attributed their healthi- 
ness. 

There are many beautiful valleys in California where turkeys 
may be grown to great advantage by the hundreds and even thou- 
sands, but even on small ranches a few may be kept. 



MORE ABOUT TURKEYS 



There is no need for any sickness amongst turkeys whatever in 
California, if they are properly cared for, and I think eventually 
California will supply the Eastern States with their Thanksgiving 
and -Christmas dinners, for they have there a disease among turkeys 
which is so serious that it is decimating, and, in some places, wiping 
out whole flocks of turkeys. The disease is called "Blackhead." as 
the head in some instances turns black or dark colored before or 
at the time of death. 

The Oregon Experiment Station has recently issued llullelin 
No. 95, by E. F. Pernot, on Disease of Turkeys. This bulletin con- 
tains information of very great importance to the turkey raisers of 
the State. It treats the subject of Blackhead, explaining the cause 
of this disease, the symptoms, and treatment. This bulletin, which 
may be obtained free on application to the Experiment Station, 
Corvallis, Oregon, should be in the hands of every turkey breeder 
in the State. 

In sections of the East, Blackhead has almost wiped out the 
turkeys, and the same thing is liable to happen in this State if 
proper measures are not taken to prevent it. 

I give here a brief summary of Prof. Pernot's bulletin: 

Symptoms: — Diarrhoea is the most pronounced symptom. The 
discharges are frequent, thin, watery, and generally of a yellowish 
color. This, however, sometimes occurs from other intestinal dis- 
orders and does not alone signify the presence of the malady. The 
next symptom is the drooping tail, followed by a drooping of 
the wings after which death soon ensues. When the disease is at 
its height, the head assumes a dark color, hence the name. Black- 
head. Young turkeys are much more susceptible or they may be 
more delicate, and cannot withstand the invasion of the parasites 
so well. They begin by moping and hunching up as though they 
were cold, diarrhoea soon sets in. the tails droop, then the wings 
droop, and they go about uttering a pitiful "peep," after which they 
soon die. A blackening of the head does not always occur. 

It is only by careful post mortem that the true cause of the dis- 
ease may be determined. 

The Cause : — The disease is caused by animal parasites, which 
can be detected only by the aid of a microscope. Because of their 
minuteness and growth in the mucous membranes of the digestive 
tract, they are easily carried |Dy the excreta to food, which upon be- 
coming contaminated, transmits them to other fowls. This is the 
usual means of infection. 

Remedies: — Food given to fowls should never come in contact 



TURKEYS AND HOW TO RAISE THEM loi 

with their droppings, as one bird with t'he disease will infect the 
feeding ground of others. Better sacrifice the bird at once than 
run the risk of spreading the infection to the whole flock. A sick 
bird should be removed from the flock and placed in close quarters, 
which may afterwards be disinfected, or the bird may be killed at 
once and then should be burned. Medical treatment is not very 
successful, owing to the difficulty of reaching the parasites at the 
seat of the disease ; yet treatifig them with some of the following 
remedies is well worth the trouble: Sulphur, 5 grains; sulphate of 
iron, 1 grain : sulphate of quinine, 1 grain. Place this amount in 
capsules and administer one night and morning to each turkey for 
a week. If the bird does not respond to treatment, kill it at once 
without drawing blood, and then burn the carcass, disinfecting the 
coop. . 

A solution of carbolic acid prepared by mixing five parts of the 
acid to 100 parts of water makes a good disinfecting solution, or 
chloride of lime, 5 ounces to 1 gallon of water, is good. Corrosive 
sublimate in the strength of 1 ounce to eight gallons of water, is a 
strong disinfectant, and may be used with a broom or spray to wet 
every part of the coop and floor, but it is poisonous and must be 
handled with great care. To disinfect the entire premises when the 
fowls are running at large is impracticable ; but lime should be used 
freelv on the droppings beneath where they roost. When the dis- 
ease becomes seriously destructive it is more than likely all the 
flock are afifected, and it may be necessary to destroy all the re- 
maining birds and disinfect the premises as thoroughly as possible. 
In such cases it would be better to suspend t'he raising of turkeys 
for one year. 

Liver Complaint 

Personallv. I have only met once with a case in California which 
might be called Blackhead. I have seen many cases of common 
liver complaint, and by my directions others have succeeded in 
curing many of these. 

Dr. Salmon tells us that the seat of the disease called IMackhead 
is in the caecca. The caecca is sometimes called the blind bowel ; 
it is a sort of "appendix" in ,the turkey, having no outlet. It is two 
lobes of bowel united by a ribbon of fat (the. pancreas). In Black- 
head and also in some cases of liver complaint, an abscess forms in 
one or both caecca, but this can only be discovered after death, and 
I have only found it in a postmortem of one turkey. The fact is, I 
have been so very "lucky" in raising turkeys that now I rarely 
even see a sick turkey, and I have many letiters from our readers 
telling me they have cured their turkeys by my directions, so I will 
repeat them again for the benefit of new comers. 

l*'irst, liver complaint comes from wrong feeding, or over-feeding, 
which has overw^orked the liver; secondly. Blackhead comes from a 
parasite ; thirdly, the symptoms of both diseases are almost exactly 
the same in the first stages. Dr. Cushman, in discussing this mat- 
ter, decided that when the bright yellow diarrhoea comes on show- 
ing liver trouble, the remedy is "something bitter and something 
sour." This is easy to remember. He also recommends no food 



I02 MRS. BASLEV.S POULTRY BOOK 

but green food and says that turkey's have been known to cure them- 
selves by living on acorns. 

My remedy is first a liver pill followed by quinine for a week, 
and sour milk and no food but onions and green alfalfa or grass, 
keeping this up until cured. 

I have a letter from a successful turkey raiser of Long Beach, 
near Los Angeles. She writes: "I wish to tell you my experience 
with liver sick turkeys. I had a gobbler weigliing eighteen or 
twenty pounds, and I made the mistake so many do of allowing 
turkeys and chickens to run together ; my experience is that turkeys, 
especially toms, will not stand such quanitites of food that hens do. 
Well, lie got very sick, so bad he was as light as a feather, and my 
cure, which never fails, was administered — a bottle of Jamaica gin- 
ger and a bottle of liquozone were procured. I put him in a clean, 
large coop and he lay on a bed of straw for days, so weak he could 
not stand. The first day I gave him one teaspoonful of the ginger 
and one teaspoonful of the liquozone mixed and diluted until it was 
not too strong, giving two or three spoons every hour of the di- 
luted. The next day giving it three times a day ; after that twice a 
day. I did not allow him anything to eat, but of an evening gave 
him the smallest sized capsule of quinine. Kept that up until he 
began to get good and hungry, then fed him a few grains of wheat, 
only about six grains, and a little speck of alfalfa. I have found that 
feed kills them every time when they are so sick. I never failed to 
cure the worst cases if ! treat them like I tell you. Then if they 
hump up again and begin to get sick again, I give them a dose in 
the evening. The ginger warms them up and starts circulation, 
and the liquozone kills the germs." 

Liquozone is very acid, it tastes like sulphuric acid and water, 
and I have no doubt th^it my friend's cure is a good one. Remem- 
ber Dr. Cushman says "something bitter and something sour," and 
if your turkeys get sick, try it immediately. 




A Bronxe "Gobbler'' 



Ducks in Their Varieties 



In the springtime of the year in the East the big duck 
ranches hatch ducks by the hundreds of thousands, but in 
California, or at least in the neighborhood of Los Angeles, there 
are not such large ranches, and ducks do not seem as popular. 
Probably some farmers have had a few in their yard at some time, 
just to give them a trial, and have found them a continual nuisance, 
as they greedily eat the whole allowance of food from the expectant 
chickens and dabble in their drinking vessels, so they have to be 
continually cleaned and replenished, and with great injustice to the 
ducks they have let this prejudice them, where if they had kept the 
ducks separate, they would have found them easier to raise than 
chickens. 

Ducks grow faster and are ready for the market earlier than 
chickens ; they are not troubled by the diseases of hens, neither do 
they have lice, except if raised under a hen when very young, be- 
fore the feathers grow, the gray head-lice may get on their heads, 
crawl into their ears and kill them, but this is before they feather 
out. Mosquitoes which are very troublesome in some places to the 
chickens, causing great mortality, never trouble ducks, neither do 
fleas or ticks. I think the reason for their immunity from vermin is 
that their feathers are very oily and thick and the down under the 
feathers is an extra protection. Hens require a dust bath, while 
ducks require a water bath to keep them clean and healthy. 

Most of the popular varieties of ducks can be raised and bred 
without water to swim in, but on the very large duck ranches a 
supply of running water so that they may have fresh water to drink, 
and a bathing place for the breeding ducks, is a great advantage. 

Ducks should be kept entirely away form chickens and turkeys, 
as they pollute water so badly it makes the other fowls sick. I 
found on my small ranch where there was only water piped in, 
after trying various plans for watering the ducks, an easy and con- 
venient way. I had a barrel sawed in two, two-thirds and one- 
third. I knocked the head out of the larger end and buried that 
part, making it deep enough so the top of the barrel was just below 



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Some Fine Siieoiinens of Indian Runners 



104 ^IRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

the ground; any box with no bottom would do as well. The one- 
third of the barrel had a bunghole in the bottom. This one-third 
barrel I placed over the sunken one. I had a broom handle which 
fitted into the bunghole and every dav I let the dirtv water run 
through it into the bottomless barrel and it soaked away. In this 
manner I gave my ducks fresh water and a clean bath ever}- day. 
I found if I sawed the barrel exactly in half, it made the top part 
deeper than I wanted, and the bottom not deep enough. 

The Varieties 

I have successfully bred the following most popular breeds of 
ducks and think a slight review of them may be interesting and 
helpful to beginners: The Aylesbury. Pekin, Indian Runner, Buff 
Orpington Duck and the Muscovy. 

The Aylesbury 

The Aylesbury, called after a town in Buckingham, England, arc 
about a pound heavier than the Pekin. The standard weights be- 
ing, drake, 9 lbs. ; duck, 8 lbs. ; young drake, 8 lbs. ; young duck, 7 
lbs. Their color is pure white, with pinkish-white beak and shanks. 
They are extremely popular in England and are hardy and vigorous. 
There are not many breeders of them in this country, but an Eng- 
lishman, Mr. V. G. Huntley of Petaluma, who has imported some 
exceedingh' fine Aylesbury ducks from England, says he has a 
large demand for them, as they are a rarity in this country. He 
considers their flesh better than that of any other variety of ducks. 
In plumage the Aylesbury are a pure spotless white with hard, 
close feathers that glisten in the sunlight like satin. The ad- 
vantages claimed for this breed are the easiness with which it is 
acclimated, its early maturing, its great hardiness, its large size, 
being heavier than any except the Rouen, its great prolificancy and 
its beauty. 

The Pekin 

The Pekin is undoubtedly the most popular breed on the large 
duck ranches in the East, where thousands of them are fattened and 
turned off every season. This breed is variously called the Imperial 
Pekin and the Mammoth Pekin and Rankin's Pekin. It Avas 
brought to this country from China in the early seventies and im- 
mediately took the first place as the most prolific and rapidly grow- 
ing duck on the market. In shape and carriage the Pekin has a dis- 
tinct type of its own, which by some is described as resembling an 
Indian canoe, from the keel-like shape and the turned-up tail. 
Though Pekin ducks may not merit all that is claimed for them by 
enthusiastic breeders, it is certain that the duck business could 
not have attained its present proportion without the Pekin duck, 
and that as a market duck this breed takes the lead. They are 
hardy, quick growers, thrive in close confinement and are readv 
to market at ten weeks of age. The plumage is soft, more downy 
than that of other varieties and is of a creamy wdiite in color. The 
beak is of a deep orange yellow, and. according to Standard, should 



DUCKS AND THEIR VARIETIES 105 

be free from black marks. The shanks and toes are reddish orange 
color. 

All ducks are of a timid disposition, and the Pekin more so than 
those of other breeds; in fact, they will injure themsevles so badly 
if frightened by cat, dog or a stranger, or by being caught up, that 
they may have to be killed. A fright, if not fatal, will take ofif 
several days' growth of the young, and stop the laying of the adult 
ducks. 

The Rouen 

The Rouen duck, so named for a city in Normandy, where they 
are supposed to have originated, are still bred there in large num- 
bers. The Rouen duck is a fine market bird, but does not mature 
as early as the Pekin or Aylesbury. It is easily fattened, hardy and 
quiet in disposition and not as nervous as the Pekin. 

The Rouen drake is a magnificent colored bird. Neck and head 
are irridescent green, breast wine color and the lower part of the 
body delicate steel gray, penciled with very fine black lines. About 
June a remarkable change takes place in the drake. He begins to 
lose his lustrous feathers, those of the neck dropping out, being re- 
placed by feathers of a russet brown. The magnificently colored 
drake is clothed in sober hues for the summer. In October he again 
resumes his gorgeous raiment. 

The Indian Runner 

Many years ago Indian Runners were brought from India to 
England by a sea captain, hence the name "Indian," while the "Run- 
ners" came from their great agility. They do not waddle like other 
ducks, but run more like a plover, and are very quick in their move- 
ments. In England their good qualities quickly captivated the 
thrifty farmers. Individual ducks there have made a record of 225 
eggs per annum. Here in California I had ten ducks which laid 
2331 eggs in one year. I think the climate of California more nearly 
resembles that of their native land and their laying is never checked 
by cold or snow, so that here they lay better than in England or 
the Eastern States. In India they were bred for their laying and 
table qualities, no attention being paid to the color of their plum- 
age ; all the Indians cared for was the eggs, and they layed eggs 
galore. English breeders claim that eight-year-old ducks of this 
breed will lay as well as yearlings, and on this account, and their 
capacity for forging, they have become very popular in England 
and Australia. 

While the weight of the matured Pekin is greater than that of 
the Indian Runner there is more meat in proportion to their weight 
in the Runners on account of the smallness of the bones; the meat 
is also of a much finer quality, finely grained and juicy and re>- 
sembling in flavor the much extolled canvas-back duck. The eggs 
of the Indian Runner are an ivy white in color, greatly resembhng 
Minorca eggs, very delicate in taste, and in England their eggs are 
in great demand in the tuberculosis sanitariums on account of their 
delicate flavor, richness and nutritive value, and absolute freedom 



io6 MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

from tuberculosis taint, and there is a higher price paid for them 
than the hen's eggs. 

The standard color of the Indian Runners in this country is fawn 
and white. In England they also have the black and white, the 
brown and while and tlie pure white. 

The Buff Orpington 

Bufit' Orpington ducks are a breed of Mr. William Cook's making. 
He named them as he did the Orpington hens, after his own place 
in Kent, England. The color of the Buff Orpingtons is a soft shade 
of bufif, the drakes having rich brown heads. The Bufif Orpington 
has a good deal of the Indian Runner blood in it, and from this 
source its laying qualities are gathered. Mr. Cook claims they are 
better layers than any other of the duck family. Many of them lay 
a beautiful green egg, although a greenish-white is the usual color. 
These ducks weigh a pound and a half more than the Indian Run- 
ner, are large and more plump birds, maturing early, and one of 
the best market birds. 

The Muscovy 
The Muscovy Duck is not largely bred in this country. They are 
not like any other ducks and do not interbreed with others. It it a 
native of South America, where it may still be found in its wild 
state. It comes in two varieties, white and black and white. The 
males are much larger than the females. I had one weighing four- 
teen pounds. Both sexes have cruncles at the base of the beak; 
these become larger every year, giving them a vulture-like appear- 
ance. Muscovy ducks are rather awkward in the water, preferring 
to live on the land. They are pugnacious and ill-tempered, and, al- 
though they have web-feet, they have very sharp claws that can, 
and do, scratch in a most unpleasant way. They are strong on the 
wing, flying easily over the barn, and they like to perch on the roof. 
They are good setters, and their eggs take thirty-five days to incu- 
bate. 

Hatching and Brooding 

The first thing the amateur needs is first-class breeding stock or 
eggs of the same. There is sure to be sad loss among young duck- 
lings, bred from debilitated stock. Good stock should be secured 
to start with, and when properly fed and caied for, there need be no 
fear of loss. 

A good incubator carefully operated without variation of tem- 
perature should receive the eggs. They take twenty-eight days to 
hatch. Duck eggs will hatch well in any of the standard incu- 
bators ; they require more airing than do the eggs of the hen, and I 
have found that by sprinkling them every other day, after the first 
week, I was sure of a good hatch. Sprinkle the eggs, or moisten 
them thoroughly, with warm water, when they are out of the ma- 
chine, and do not put the water in the incubator. I found this much 
the best plan. I think wetting the shell of the egg helps to soften 
it and make it more brittle, enabling the duck to break its way out 
easily. I also do this when hatching duck eggs under hens. 



DUCKS AND THEIR VARIETIES - 107 

A brooder adapted to chicks will answer equally well for ducks. 
The little fellows should be at least thirty-six hours old before 
taken from the incubator and placed in the brooder, which should 
be previously prepared for them by placing a board about ten inches 
wide a few inches from the front of the brooder forming a very 
small yard with a little water fountain so arranged that they can 
get their bills in but not their bodies. The birds should be con- 
fined to this small space in' front of the brooder for the first day, 
or until they have learned the way into the hover. Bed the little 
fellows with hay, chafif or cut straw. Keep the pens clean both out- 
side and in. The welfare of the ducklings depend upon this. Be 
sure to give them shade. 



Mr. James Rankin has been called the father of the duck industry 
in America. He and a number of others in the East are now hatch- 
ing by the thousands and tens of thousands. He writes : "With us 
it is the surest crop we can grow; it makes the best returns of any 
crop on the farm." 

As he is a noted expert in the business I cannot do better than 
give his directions for raising the ducks and his formulas for feed- 
ing at the different ages. I have tried them mystelf and do not 
think they can be improved upon. 

Feeding 

The first food should consist of bread or cracker-crumbs slightly 
moistened and about 10 per cent of hard boiled eggs chopped fine, 
shell and all; mix in this food five per cent of coarse sand. Do not 
place grit by them and expect them to eat it, but mix the sand in 
their food and so compel them to eat it as it is the most essential 
part of the whole thing. 

Scatter the food on a board, place the young ducklings on it and 
they will be busily eating it within ten minutes. Oine hundred to 
one hundred and fifty ducks can be put in one brooder six feet long. 
When two or three weeks old, not more than seventy-five should be 
kept in one brooder. The heat under the hover should be kept at 
about 90 degrees for the first day or two, when it should be grad- 
ually reduced as the ducks grow older. In the climate of Southern 
California, ducklings rarely require brooder heat more than two 
weeks. 

The second day rolled oats and bran can be added to the food ; 
a little finely cut clover, lettuce or cabbage can now be safely used. 
At ten days feed one-fourth corn meal, the rest wheat bran with a 
little rolled oats mjxed in, not forgetting the grit, about ten per cent 
of ground beef scraps, and the same of green food. At six weeks 
Quaker oats, grit and ten per cent beef scraps ; at eight weeks 
old feed equal parts of bran and corn meal with a little Quaker oats, 
grit and beef scraps, but no green food. 

The birds should be ready for the market at ten weeks old. They 
should be fed four times a day until six weeks old, then three times 
is sufficient. Thev should be watered only when fed until six 



io8 



MRS. BASLEY'.S POULTRY BOOK 



weeks old, then they should be watered between meals also. Feed 
at each meal all they will eat up clean, then take the remainder 
away; keep the pens dry and clean and be sure you give them shade. 

For breeding birds, old and young, during the summer and fall, 
when they are not laying — feed three parts wheat bran, one part 
quaker oat feed, one part corn meal, five per cent beef scraps 
ground fine, and five per cent grit, andall the green feed they will 
eat in the shape of corn fodder cut fine, clover, or oat fodder, or 
alfalfa. Feed this mixture twice a day, all they will eat. 

For laying birds — equal parts of wheat bran and corn meal, 
twenty per cent of quaker oat feed, ten per cent of boiled turnips 
or potatoes, fifteen per cent of clover rowen, alfalfa, green rye or 
refuse cabbage chopped fine and five per cent of grit. Feed twice a 
day all they will eat, with a lunch of corn and oats at noon ; keep 
grit and crushed oyster shells before them all the time. 

Air. Rankin adds: "I wish to emphasize several points. Do not 
forget the grit, it is absolutely essential. Never feed more than a 
little bird will eat up clean. Keep them a little hungry. See that 
the pens and yards are sweet and clean, for though ducklings may 
stand more neglect than chicks, remember that they will not thrive 
in filth. If any one fails in the duck business, it must be through 
his own incompetency and neglect." 

Mr. Rankin has his yards swept twice a week. These sweepings 
amount to many tons each season, and are spread evenly over his 
grass farm, giving enormous crops of good hay, so that where 
twenty years ago only six tons of hay were cut, now the crop is 
125 tons. 




Pekin Ducks 



Something About Geese 



Geese are, of all fowls, easiest to raise where grass is abundant, 
for they are grazing- animals. Among the various breeds raised in 
this country the Toulouse is the most profitable goose to raise. It 
grows the largest, matures the quickest and is not so much of a 
rambler or flyer as the other varieties, and as it does not take so 
readily to water it grows more rapidly and accumluates flesh faster 
than other varieties, and is not so noisy. 

There seems to be a steady demand for the beautiful large, gray 
Toulouse variety. They deserve every word of praise given them. 
They have been known to live to a great old age. I have had a 
friend in England who had a goose that had been for more than a 
hundred years in the same family, and even at that age produced 
as many and as fertile eggs as any in the flock. In fact, that goose 
had more broods each year than any other goose in the neighbor- 
hood. 

There are many points about raising geese that can be learned 
only by experience and a little practice is worth a world of theory. 
Intelligent and systematic breeding is sure to bring both pleasure 
and profit to the breeder. 

Hatching and Feeding 

For hatching goose eggs if setting hens are used, keep them free 
from lice by dusting with insect powder every week, and put from 
four to six goose eggs under every hen. After eight days test-out, 
leaving four fertile eggs under every hen to hatch. Goose eggs 
should be sprinkled every fourth day after the twelfth. In dam]) 
or cold weather with warm water; 103 degrees in hot, dry weather, 
and float them in water from one and a half to two and a half min- 
utes. If incubators are used, float always. At the last float hold 
the pip up so as not to drown the gosling inside the egg. If the 
gosling remains and dries in the shell, it should be helped out. 
Break away a little of the shell, and if the inside lining does not 
bleed the gosling is ready to come out. Ring out a cloth in water 
as hot as you can bear your hands in, wrap the egg in the cloth and 
leave for a few minutes. You will find the gosling will come out 
bright and clean. Keep the goslings warm until they are dry and 
can run around. When they are twenty-four hours old put them in 
a box, the bottom covered with sand, and feed them often with a 
crumbly mash of one-third corn meal, two-thirds bran and a pinch 
of sand. 

Goslings Are Healthy 

No other young in the whole tribe of domestic poultry is so up- 
to-date and healthy as a 3'Oung gosling. Given a tender grass plot 
and a bit of warmth, it goes merrily on its way, nipping a livinig 
and asking favors of no one. They eat daintily, preferring grass 
to all other foods. With their chatter thev are ready to meet vou. 



no MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 

take a few mouthfuls of foods, and, with the same old tune, they 
lazily saunter away in search of grass and more rest. 

Geese are turned out to pasture just the same as cattle, their 
bills having serrated edges which enable them to graze. They 
never need a warm house. An open corrall is much better in Cali- 
fornia for them and they are not given to disease. Goslings, how- 
ever, should be provided with shade, as they suffer from heat, get- 
ting a specie of blind-staggers or sunstroke if exposed to the sun. 

One of the best items of profit to be derived from a flock of Tou- 
louse geese is the feathers, which are clear gain, costing nothing but 
the trouble to pick them. Watch them in the fall and spring, twice 
a year, when they begin to pull out the feathers and thrown them 
away. I know then they are ready to pick. I think it is cruel to 
pick at any other time. Make cheesecloth sacks which will hold 
two pounds of feathers. Make them large, as the feathers will curl 
better if they are not packed together. Hang the sacks on a clothes- 
line every sunny day for about two weeks, then keep them in a well 
aired room. Women living in the city will be your best customers 
providing you let them know you have good feathers for sale. One 
can get from 75 cents to $1.00 per pound, and can never supply the 
demand. The breeders should not be picked when they are laying. 

The Varieties 

There are a number of varieties of geese, but the most profitable 
are the Toulouse, the Embden, and the China. Of the latter there 
are the two kinds, the brown and the white. The color of the Tou- 
louse is gray and white and the Embden is white. The Toulouse 
and the Embden are the larger. A pair of Toulouse have been 
known to weigh 59^^ pounds, and an Embden pair has tipped the 
beam at 57 pounds. They are great layers of large eggs, of which 
they will lay thirty to forty a year, although I know a woman who 
has a goose that layed 70 eggs without wanting to sit. 

In mating, allow two geese to one gander, though they generally 
pair off and the gander will stay with his actual mate nearly all the 
time. The gander is the protector of the goose, especially in breed- 
ing time. He will defend her and her nest fearlessly. 

Hens as Mothers 

It is not an easy matter to distinguish the sex. It is a good plan 
to put goose eggs under a hen. It takes thirty-one days to hatch 
them. Then you want to be on the watch. The hen will set all 
right, but when the young ones break the shell and the hen sees a 
queer, green little creature, with a long, wide bill saluting her, she 
takes it for a freak of nature, and off comes it head. Not many hens 
will claim the young geese or hover them ; so take the goslings away 
as they" hatch and try the hens, giving the goslings to a good slow, 
gentle hen. As soon as she takes them without any fuss there is no 
danger. If the weather is nice they should be turned out in a small 
enclosure, which can be changed every day or .so. Use boards six 
feet long and twelve inches wide. After a week let them go, and 
their foster mother's trouble begins. The little goslings do not care 



SOMETHING ABOUT GEESE ' iii 

for her calling'; they are hustling' for every spear of grass and she 
has to hunt them. Her business is to keep them warm at night 
and warm them in the daytime if they get chilled. Never allow 
goslings to get to water to swim until they are fully feathered, and 
then only let those go that you wish to keep for breeders. Many of 
them will do as well if they never go swimming. During this 
period you must keep the old geese away, as they will fight the hen 
and molest the young. 

You cannot raise geese as you do chickens and ducks, on a city 
lot. They must have pasture. It is a wrong belief that geese or 
their droppings will kill grass or pasture. If you have a large flock 
of geese and a small pasture they will clean it up; that is, they will 
eat the grass as fast as it sprouts and give it no chance to grow, 
just as a cow on a city lot will soon have only bare ground and you 
will have to tie her in the road. If you do the same with geese you 
would find the grass growing again the same as before. Geese are 
easier to raise than any other young fowls. 




Mrs. Sly'.s AVell Arranse«l Yards 



PART II. 



1001 

Questions 

and 
Answers 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



Apoplexy — What is the trouble with 
my hens? Tihey seem healthy and all 
at once they 'begin to gasp and fall 
over dead. I out one open and it was 
in fine condition, fat and nice. I can- 
not make out what it is. — Mrs. C. S. 

Answer — Your (hen had apoplexy 
from being over-ifat. The over-fat 
condition weakens the muscles, and 
the heart and brain give way. Give 
the whole flock a little Epsom salts 
in the water for a week, cut down the 
amount of grain, especially any corn 
or corn meal in their feed, and feed 
more green food and more tinimal 
food with, of course, charcoal and 
grit. 



Air Puff — I have been a constant 
reader of your articles and find them 
very good but, I have a case I never 
remember readiuig about; it is a 
Barred Rock about 6 or 7 weeks old. 
A few days ago lit went .to limping 
and I supposed' it was some of tihe 
others crowding but I have since no- 
ticed its whole right side was puffed 
away out. just tihe skin, and I took 
a needle and made a small opening 
and there was nothing but wind in at. 
I repeated the same operation next 
day. It eats and drinks and aside 
from the limping, seems to feel all 
right. They have a nice iclean run 
and lots of green stuff. I am feeding 
cracked corn, wheat and Kaffir corn. 
Could you sugigest a remedy and tell 
me what the disease is?— Mrs. J.N.H. 

Answer — Your chick had what is 
called "Air Puff" and you did just 
right in puncturing the skin; j^ou 
•saved fits life iby it. The trouble 
comes from a wound or abrasion of 
the lung tissue resulting from vio- 
lence oif some kind. After caponizing 
a chick this trouble often develops. 
I ihave seen the poor little things al- 
most as round as a ball and so light 
from the air under the skin that the 
slightest breeze rolled them along. 
Chicks that get trampled on by their 
mothers, or cockerels that fiight are 
liable to suffer from injuries that re- 
sult in "air puff." They become in- 
flated with air. The treatment .is a 
good nourishing diet. I resort to 
bread and milk in such cases. It is 



easily digested, and, puncture the skin 
to let the air out. In slight cases 
where there is only a little air under 
the skin it will disappear gradually 
without treatment, but if there is a 
considerable amount of air it is neces- 
sary to prick the skin and let it out. 



Bumblefoot- — I have a lame hen; 
she limps on her left foot. She eats 
as well as my other hens, her comb is 
red and looks as healthy as the 
others. 

I feed my chickens cooked vegeta- 
bles in the morning and dry wheat at 
niight. They have plenty of fresh wa- 
ter, and as I live in the country on a 
new place they have plenty of green 
grass and insects. I have kept chick- 
ens for three years and have never 
lost any of t'hem only this way. 

If you will tell me what is the trou_ 
ble 1 will 'be very much obliged to 
you.— Mrs. M. M. C. 

Answer — Your hen has probably 
what is called "bumble-foot." It is 
somiething like a stone bruise or a 
corn in human beings. It usually 
comes from a corn or bruises of the 
feet, wounds with thorns, broken 
glass, hard stones or other sharp sub- 
stances. The ball of the foot becomes 
swollen, inflamed, hot and painful. 
The fowl appears in pain. Corns are 
often caused 'by too small or narrow 
perches, wOiich compel the fowl to 
grasp them tightly in order to main- 
tain their position. This firmi .grasp 
continued night after night affects the 
circulation of the part of the foot that 
comes in closest contact with the 
perch. A similar condition may be 
caused by heavy birds flying from 
their perches and alighting upon a 
stony surface or hard floor. 

_ If it ihas not yet become an abscess, 
simply cut off the thickened skin or 
corn without causing bleeding and 
paint the corn with tincture of iodyne. 
If pus has developed, soak the foot in 
warm water twice a day and poultice 
until the inflammation is reduced. Af- 
ter thoroughly cleaning the foot, if 
pus has developed, open the abscess 
freely with a sharp knife and scraoe 
out the diseased matter. Wash out the 
wound carefully with peroxide of 
hydrogen or carbolized water. Stuff 



ii6 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



the wound full of iodyne gauze and 
bandage it. Continue this treatment 
daily until the wound is almost 
healed, then apply a good ointment 
daily until it is entirely well. The 
bird must be kept on clean, dry straw 
until fully recovered. 



capifating them and starting with 
fresh young hens would be better than 
trying to 'Cure them. 



Swollen Feet— Will you extend a 
helping hand to an old batch who is 
haviuig endless trouble witlu a few 
chickens? They begin to get lame 
and after a few days cannot stand 
on th.eir feet at all, and some of them 
ha-ve great swellings on top of their 
feet that look like a big boil. I only 
have about forty in all; they have all 
the range they want in abundance and 
wheat twice a day, together with 
scraps from, the- table. My hen house 
is log, I2XI.6 feet, plastered on both 
sides, two windows with glass 12-24. 
The roosts are about eighteen inches 
from the floor. If you can tell me 
the cause and cure I will thank you 
kindly as I fe.el sorely tempted some- 
times to kill all of them and start 
over. They are just icommon hens. — 
D. W. M. 

Answer — 'Your hens have either 
bumible-foot or rheumatism. The 
bumble-foot comes from an injury to 
the foot and is caused by hens jump- 
ing or rtyinig down from a 'high place 
onto stony .ground. It is also caused 
'by rocky ground a'nd is somewhat 
like a stone bruise or a corn in the 
>human family. It usually occurs in 
heavy, elderly hens and your plan of 
killing themi off for the table would 
be a good one. The cure is to lance 
the "boil" and gently squeeze the core 
out, then wash with peroxide of hyd- 
rogen and bind up wiith a soft rag and 
k.eep the hen on clean, soft straw, not 
allowing her any place to roost. Bum- 
ble-foot sometimes comes from sharp 
edges on fche perch, or very narrow 
perches. Discover w'hat is hurting 
the feet and remove the cause. It is 
sometimes necessary to poultice the 
feet to draw out all the pus. Rheum- 
atism usually comes from damp 
houses or damp iground and to cure 
that you have to change those condi- 
tions. You can also give the fowls a 
little E.psom salts in their drinking 
water, or give each affected' hen one 
dose of Epsom salts (half a teaspoon- 
ful) in a little water and put into the 
drinking water half a teaspoonful of 
bi-carbonate of soda to a quart O'f 
water. But I think your plan of de- 



Bronchitis — Will you kindly tell me 
what ails my White Leghorn hen? 
She sits around most of the time and 
squacks and slings her head and when 
I Ihold my ear to her side I can hear 
a continual rattling. Her comb is red 
and she eats well. I feed corn, wheat, 
Kaffir corn and ta'ble scraps. They 
run on plenty of green range. Her 
nostrils are clean. Age 8 months. — 

c. c. s. 

Answer — Your hen seems to have 
chronic bronchitis or is taking cold 
frequently. See that she does not 
sleep in a draught nor in a house that 
is too tightly closed. Give her a tea- 
spoonful of honey night and miorning 
for a week and keep her clean from 
lice and I think she will be well in a 
week. A little red pepper and chopped 
onions in her food would also help 
the cure. 



Comb Discolored — I am a constant 
reader of the Tribune but for the first 
time I take the liberty to ask your ad- 
vice. I have a White Leghorn coick 
two years old; he has always been 
healthy, but for the last two months 
I noticed that his comb and wattles 
turned a deep purple and would re- 
main so for days, then tihey would 
change to a natural color again, but 
only for a day or so. and then turn 
purple again. He seems to be healthy 
and vigorous in every way. Now, 
can you tell mie what can be the mat- 
ter with him and what I can do for 
him, or if it would be wis^e to use him 
anv further for breeding purposes": 
—Mrs. L. S. 

Answer — The 'Comb .tell'si quite a 
little story of what is going on in the 
organs of the whole body. Any 
dhange in the appearance of the comb 
is indicative of a disturbance in some 
other part of the bird. 

The dark colored comb is an indica- 
tion of a disordered liver and indiges- 
tion. The dark icomh is one of the 
first symptoms noticed in congestion 
of the liver and most cases of this 
come from an ovejfeeding of a ration 
too rich in starch elements, such a? 
too much potatoes or bread in the 
table scraps, and insufficient exercise. 
I do not know how you are feeding 
your fowls, but I would recommend 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS U? 

you to put a little Epsom salts into green grass all the time.— Mrs. A. 

the drinking water, or you can ,give L. S. 

him alone a .small half teaspoonful Answer-The starting point of near 

in a ta'blespoon.ful of water and put , ^,j ^^^^^^ ^^ blindness in chicks is in 

in the drinkmg water of the whole / .breeding stock. A slight chill 

flock ten drops of tincture of nux ^^ ^^^^ .^ sufficient to start an epi- 

yomaca to a pint of water. Feed p en- ^^^.^ ^^ ^j^j^ blindness in a flock of 

ty of green food and more meat tman ^^.^^ .^ ^^ ,^j^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ -^^ 

you are now giving; keep this up for ,^^^j^^^ tendency to weakness of these 

a week and tben turn the birds out on ^^^^ ^^^.^^^^^ ^j^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^ -^^ f^^ 

a gra,ss range if possible, otherwise ^^eeding condition. This blindness is 

give the birds as scratching material ^ result of an inflamation of the muc- 

the waste from an alfalfa hay mow ^^^ membrane of the eye and lids 

and allow them only a litt e gram ^.hi^h produces a sticky exudate which 

wheat, and make them scratch hard ^^j^^ ^ ji^^ to,o ether. 

for that. It would not be advisable Sometimes the inflamation of the 

to iis,e the male bird for breeding. jj^^ .^ ^^^^.^^^ ^ irritaing substances 

Breed only from t'he most vi.gorous jjj.^ jj^^^ ^^ ^,^^^p^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^^ -^^^^^^ 

stock you >have^ powders or kerosene getting into the 

_,,,,, J J c c 1 eyes. These causes may produce 

Bald Headed-Some of my hens bfj^dness in chicks that do not liave 

are becoming bald-headed. 1 he feath- ancestors. That form of in- 

ers for 'half an inch and more back of fl^,„,ation of the lids accompanied by 

the comb disappear Th.e hens seem . .^.j^^i of tbe lids is not uncom- 

the best of health and lay well. j^^^,^, ^^^^^^^ ^ irritants, kerosene 



There are no lice or mites on the 



particularly. 



chickens, on the roosts or in the nests Uncleanlines-s is another cause of 

If yoii can give me a remedy I shall blindness of this sort and too many 

consider it a great favor.— Mrs. E. ^^.j^^ attempt to raise chicks are care- 

^- ^- less in this respect. Lice and mites 

Answer — This is not at all an un- aLso do their share to cause the trou- 

CQimmon occurence just before the ble. 

moult. Those feathers have merely The best way to remedy such cases 
ripened a little earlier than the ot'h- is to prevent them or remove the 
ers, and stramge to say, it is usually cause if possible. In cases where 
the best layers that are so affected. there is an amount of exudate it will 
You can grease the 'bald spot with a be well to bathe the eyes with a solu- 
little vaseline. This will hasten the tion of boracic acid, fifteen grains to 
growth of the new feathers. a half cup of water, and then dry with 
a soft cloth and apply a little carbolic 

Blind Chicks— What is the matter salve. It is difficult to get s,atisfac- 

with my little chickens? They are tory restilts dosing young chickens 

about two months old. I find them ^'th medicine, but you migfht give 

with one eye shut and sometimes them either a little bread and milk 

both, and when I open it a watery sub- with a sprinklin.g of red pepper and 

stance comes from them. When only sulphur on it or rice boiled in milk 

one eve is efifected they are perfectly with a tablespoonful of iground cmna- 

blind 'in it, but can see all right out »"0" ^o^ each pint of milk. 

of the other and w'hi'n both eyes are 

affected they are blind in both. Mouths Red and Sore— I have about 

Their mouths are perfectly clear 60 little chicks, hatched out with hens, 

and they have a rattle in their throat. and am letting their mothers care for 

They have been aflfected now for them. I feed w'heat. Have a box of 

about two weeks and several have bran and feed meal before them all 

died. It seem.s very contaigious. t'he time, fresh water daily, lawn clip- 

I have put spirits of camphor in pings most of the time; a box of 

their drinking water and sulphate of .ground shells, and once a week 

iron. T also made a salve of lard and ground meat or ground bone, fresh. 

Egyptian insect powder and rubbed Am I feeding them properly, and if 

that on their eyes with a feather. not, please tell mie how to feed? I 

wh:,-'h was very hiighly recommended let all th.e chickens run together, big 

to me. but everything has failed to and little. 

cure them. They run on a yard of For lice, I grease the old hens and 



ii8 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



the little chicks' iheads under the neck, 
so do .not think the lice bother them 
much. 

I have lost two or three little 
chicks about two or three weeks old. 
They eat, but iget poor and weak, and 
finally die. Some of them keep 
swallowing all the time, and on ex- 
amining their mouths, find them red 
and sore; wihite canker under the 
tongues. What ican I do to keep the 
rest of the flock from getting it? Is 
it contagious? Will you please tell 
me what to do for them? Thankmg 
you in advance, 1 remain, yours truly. 
— M. C. 

Answ^er — Your little chicks have 
lice, to begin with. Lice stunts the 
growth and make them poor and 
weak and ready to take any disease 
that is going. Yours have taken can- 
ker. Now, the it'hing to do is to put 
four grains of sulpho-carbolate of 
zinc in an ounce of distilled water; 
paint tihe spots lightly with that so- 
lution one day. The next day swab 
or spray the mouth and throat with 
peroxide of hydrogen; using one 
spoonful of peroxide to one spoonful 
of water. Continue this until they 
are well. It is very contagious, and 
you had better put a little germazone 
into the water. Powder the chickens 
well with lice powder, and their moth- 
ers also. 

Your feed is fairly good, al- 
though I prefer jhe chick feed corn- 
posed of a variety of grains. This 
you can buy ready mixed at the poul- 
try houses. 

Canker — I am anxious to know if 
the heavy Black Orpingtons are 
hardy. I have just bought a fine 
•cockerel and four hens; one of them 
has just igot canker. W'hat is the 
cause and remedy? They are kept in 
a yard by themselves and get clean 
drinking water, and sleep in a fresh 
air house with open side facing east. 
Do you favor open front houses for 
fancy breeds? I feed trtem with mash 
in the morning and wheat in the af- 
ternoon, and alfalfa grows in their 
vard.— Mrs. M. N. 

Answer — The Black Orpingtons are 
very hardy. Am sorry your pen has 
canker. The cure for that is to paint 
tihe spots with sulpho-corbolate of 
zinc (four grains in an ounce of dis- 
tilled water) nig"ht and morning. This 
will kill the germ, 'but in case it is 



diphtheritic roup, would advise you 
to paint it one day with the sulpho- 
carbolate of zinc and the next day 
with peroxide of hydrogen, as the lat- 
ter kills the diphtheritic igerm. The 
open front houses are the best for 
every kind of fowl in this climate. A 
change of diet will often affect the 
droppings of the fowls, w^hen they are 
normal. You had bei'-.ter slig-htly 
change the foods', or if you feed them 
charcoal, it will materially a^ssist the 
digestion, and you need fear no trou- 
ble. A little Epsom salts in the wa- 
ter, if the fowls are very fat and 
heavy, is also an assistant, but by 
giving them plenty of green food, 
you will have no trobule. 

Sore Throat — Will you please tell 
me what to do for our hens? They 
have something the matter with their 
throats. It gets isore right on the 
tongue. It is yellow and just like 
leather. It first starts like a canker; 
they cannot eat and droop around. 
We have not had any die yet, but I 
would like to know how to treat 
them..— Mrs. L. A. G. 

Answer — It is either diphtheric 
roup or canker that your 'hens have 
I think it is the diphtheria, and the 
treatment is to iswab their throats 
with peroxide of hydrogen. One 
spoonful of peroxide and one of wa- 
ter, or you might use the peroxide 
pure. I do not think it would be too 
strong. Give the hens also a one- 
grain pill of quinine as a tonic and 
put a little germazone in the drinking 
water. 



Cold in the Head — Can you tell me 
what is the matter with my chickens? 
They eat, seem to feel good, sing and 
play and are laying good, but they 
seem to have a cold, or something. 
They try to blow their nose and bub- 
bles come out. Have been that way 
for about six weeks; they have a good 
coop with no air holes; six by eight; 
one end open; only twenty-five to 
roost in it. They have had blue- 
stone in their drinking water every 
day for a month; they do not get any 
worse or secern to be an better; they 
have warm mash for morning feed 
and wheat noon and night. Would 
they be good to eat in that condition? 
— F. C. H. 

.A.nswer — I am afraid that your 
chickens are too crowded in their 
roosting quarters and that they get 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



119 



too warm at night and come out into 
the cool morning air and in this way 
take cold. Or the open end may be 
towards the night breeze. They evi- 
dently have, for some cause, silght 
colds. Bluestone, or germazone in 
the water is an excellent cure and by 
adding chopped onions and a little 
red pepper to the mas'h, should cure 
them. One teaspoonful of red pepper 
for every twelve hens is the dose. If 
the chickens are not feverish and the 
discharge from the nostrils has no 
bad odor, would consider they are fit 
for food. 



iCough and Sneeze — Will you please 
tell me what is the matter with my 
birds? I have several that cough or 
sneeze. I do not know which. They 
will shake their heads and "holler." 
One can hear them quite a distance. 
Will you please tell me the disease 
and remedy? — B. J., Tucson, Ariz. 

Answer — Your fowls have bron- 
chitis and perhaps some influenza. 
Give them bread and milk for supper, 
and a quinine pill and half a tea- 
spoonful of red pepper mixed with 
butter. And see that they do not 
sleep in a draught or in a house where 
the rain comes in on them. 



Congestion of the Brain — I kindly 
ask you to tell me what is the trouble 
with my White W^yandotte cock; he 
was strong and vigorous until he com- 
menced to moult when he got bowel 
trouble, of which I cured him. One 
evening as I went to shut the chick- 
ens up I found him on the floor un- 
able to set on the roosts; when I 
picked him up and set him on the 
perch he fell as though dizzy and 
rolled over and over. He continued 
to get worse until at last his head and 
neck turned comnletely around with the 
bill setting straight up. His appetite 
was good until his neck became so 
twisted that he could not swallow. As 
soon as he was a little disturbed he 
would twist his neck entirely around. 
If I put him up on a box no matter 
how low it was. he seemed to get dizzy 
and would tumble around on the 
ground. I feed mostly wheat, lucern 
leaves, bone and some meat fresh 
ground, mangle beets and grit. What 
do you think of whey for chickens? — 
Mrs. L. P. 

Answer: — The symptoms you describe 
are of congestion of the brain. This 



may occur in fat birds from fright or 
indigestion and is frequently associated 
with irritation of the intestines from 
worms. In case it is worms, give ten 
drops of turpentine in a teaspoonful of 
Epsom salts in a tablespoon of water. 
A pill of three or four grains of asafoe- 
dita will often cure this trouble, which 
really comes as a nervous affection. It 
also may come from bad meat. Give 
charcoal in the feed. Whey has not 
much nourishment for chickens, but you 
can give it them as a drink. 



Catarrh — ^Can you please tell me 
what the trouble is when chickens cough 
and their nose runs, also state the best 
way to rid them of this plague? — ?^lrs. 
S. A. B. 

Answer : Your chickens have taken 
cold and may probably have lice. Try to 
discover what is giving them their severe 
colds. It is probably some draught. Put 
a piece of blue stone in their drinking 
water (the size of a bean in a quart 
of water) and give them a pill of the 
following : Mix two tablespoons of lard, 
one each of mustard, red-pepper, vine- 
gar ; mix thoroughly, add sufficient 
flour and make a stiff dough. Give a 
bolus of this as big as the first joint of 
your little finger every night. 

Cannibalism — I bad a hatchinor of 
Black Minorcas three weeks ago of 115 
chicks; today I have about 80. In the 
first place, the chicks are hearty and 
well, but will bite the rectum of the 
other chicks and in two or three min- 
utes will just tear the bowels out and 
kill the little chicks. Every one will 
give it a nip and if we are not con- 
stantly on the alert all would be dead. 
No one of whom I have inquired has 
ever heard of such a thing. I have 
raised these just as I raise my White 
Leghorns. I hatched 160 seven weeks 
old and today have 158 fine chicks. You 
would oblige me very much with a 
remedy.— W. P. H. 

Answer: The remedy for "cannibal- 
ism" is first, to keep all the chicks busy 
with exercising ; in order to do this keep 
the floor of the brooder covered with 
chaff, or finely cut alfalfa hay at least 
an inch deeo and feed the chicks small 
grains (chick feed) in this; the hay or 
chaff keeps the toes and feet covered, 
conceals them, and the busy little things 
are so occupied scratching that they 
do not get into mischief. Secondly, give 
them a little more r.nimal food, or milk. 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



The cannibals have a craving for ani- 
mal food, and sometimes a bit of fat 
salt pork, whether fed to them or nailed 
up where they can peck at it, satisfies 
this craving. Thirdly, find the first 
leader of this mischief, and either kill 
him or isolate him and give him to a 
hen to bring up. This bad habit is usu- 
ally started by one chick, and all the 
others follow suit f.nd soon the whole 
brooder will acquire the habit and it is 
almost impossible to stop it if it has 
got a good start. 

Toe Eating — Can you tell me 
what causes little chicks to pick at 
each others toes? They all pick at 
one till the blood comes, then so many 
chase it that it dies. Then they start 
on another and sometimes they even 
cat the entrails out. I bought my chick- 
ens when they were a week old and fed 
them according to your directions. I 
first fed raw meat and cooked, then I 
tacked pieces on a board to keep them 
busy but nothing seemed to stop them 
and I took the one out with the sore 
toes. I gave lime and salts and char- 
coal. I hatched some dark colored 
chicks in my own incubator and with 
them I have not had any trouble in 
that wav. I trust that vou can help me. 
— H. L.' 

Answer : It is usually with the white 
or light colored chicks that we have this 
trouble. The little toes are so attrac- 
tive and look so very good to eat that 
a lively chick will often try to taste 
his neighbor's toe and it tastes so good 
that he continues the performance and 
soon teaches the others. Dark toes 
are not so attractive looking, hence their 
immunitj'. You did quite right to add 
more meat and even a little salt pork 
to their diet, but the best way of pre- 
venting the trouble is to give the chicks 
chaff at least an inch deep in the nur- 
sery of their brooder. I have found that 
alfalfa hay or wheat hay cut in a clover 
cutter an inch in length make very 
good chaff for the chicks. I scatter the 
chickfeed a little at a time, three times 
a day in this and the chicks scratch in 
it and find the grains and at the same 
time it conceals their toes from their 
hungry brothers. In this way you not 
only prevent this vice but you make the 
chicks scratch many hours a dav and 
tliat broadens their backs and develops 
the egg organs and strengthens their 
digestion, keeps them out of mischief, 
health", h.-^ and busv. Try this nlan 
and you will be surprised to find what 



extra fine layers you will have next 
year. 



Cancer — The writer wished to know 
if poultry are subject to cancer. — J. H. 

Answer: Poultry are not subject to 
cancer, but they are to tuberculosis, 
v/hich may be taken for the same. There 
is no cure for this but the hatchet. A 
thorough disinfecting of the premises 
must be made. The bodies of any fowl 
dying from this disease should be 
Inirned, or buried very deeply, as it is 
an infectious disease. 



Cough — We have a disease in our 
poultry. They have a phlegm in their 
throats and cough ; they seem all right 
to look at them ; they eat and drink 
until the day before thev die, when they 
begin to droop. I notice it only when I 
let them out in the morning, or by dis- 
turbine them at night. They are fed 
about twelve pounds of wheat a day, 
two sheaves of barley, a pan of soaked 
bread, occasionally a feed of boiled 
potatoes mixed with bran and a little 
cayenne pepper. I hav^ been 'living 
them carbolic acid in their drinking 
water, about seven drops to a milk pan 
full ; they usually drink it before being 
let out of the feed shed. We have lost 
only two birds, a peacock and a young 
turkey, but they all seem to have it. I 
will be much obliged if you can tell me 
what the disease is and how to treat it. 
— M. G. 

Answer : Your chickens have a 
slieht cold, more like bronchitis than 
roup. I would advise you to put some 
germozone into the water given them 
for drinking and some chooned onions 
in their food, and considerable red 
pepper. There is a nossibility that their 
coughing comes from dust of some kind 
in their sleeping coop, or from barley 
beards in the straw. You had better 
not give them any more carbolic acid 
'n the water. It is verv injurious to 
turke-s. It is alwavs best to try dieting 
and simple remedies. A teaspoonful of 
lionev once or twice a day will often 
cure phlegm in the throat. 



Crop-Bound — I have about loo 
Leghorns ; been very healthy all winter ; 
laying good. Now, about six weeks ago 
I lost eleven of the heaviest ones in six 
days. They had yellow droppings ; lived 
only two da^s and died. Four others 
died after having a heavy crop hanging 
down ; they were apparently healthy 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



and laying eggs regularly ; I cut the 
crops off three of them and found 
nothing but long strings of hay. Please 
oblige me by telling me the cause and 
what remedies. — A. F. H. 

Answer : Your hens are suffering 
from what is called crop-bound. They 
eat long pieces of hay. which form into 
a ball in the croo and cannot pass 
through them. After a time this fer- 
ments ■ and decays and poisons the 
chickens, or brings on inflammation of 
the crop. When long pieces of grass 
or hay cause this trouble, as in your 
case, almost the only remedy is to cut 
open the crop of the bird and wash 
it out. Have someone hold the bird so 
you can have both hands free to work. 
Pluck enough feathers from the breast 
to give bare skin half an inch wide by 
two inches long. Then with a sharp 
knife cut through the skin, lengthwise 
of the bird, an opening one inch long 
over the place of the swollen crop. Cut 
only the skin, leaving the crop untouch- 
ed until the blood of the first incision 
has ceased to flow. Then cut through 
the crop a little over a half inch long. 
Half an inch may seem short, but you 
will be surprised to see how large the 
opening is after you have worked 
tlirough it for a while. In removing 
substances from the crop be careful to 
let as little as possible slip between the 
skin and crop ; with a button-liook or 
anything else handy, remove the con- 
tents. If filled with grass or hay, it is 
sometimes necessary to cut the mass 
with scissors before any start can be 
made. When the crop is apparently 
cmptv. push your little finger into it, 
feeling to know whether there is any 
obstruction at the outlet. If you find 
the opening clear, the last thing is to 
sew up the cut. With needle and white 
silk thread, take two single stitches in 
the cut in the crop, then in the same 
wa}^ take three stitches in the skin, 
tying off the silk at each stitch. Be 
careful not to include the crop in the 
knot tied. After the operation feed 
soft food, omitting grain for a week. 



Comb and Skin Turned Dark— We 

have White Leghorn hens and about 
four weeks ago one of them died; her 
comb and skin turned black, and water 
ran from the mouth before she died : 
she sat on the roost in the day time and 
was only sick one day. Today we had 
another hen to die with the same 
trouble ; they do not seem to have any 
cold. We have a verv comfortable 



hen house and large yard ; now if you 
can tell me what the disease is and the 
cure for it, we will be more than 
pleased.— F. M. 

Answer : The dark comb and skin 
and water running from the crop is an 
indication of liver trouble and also of 
poisoning . The poisoning may be from 
carbolic acid, lice killer, paint, 
phosphorus (rat poison), or ptomaine 
poison from bad meat. Unless I knew 
more of the svmntoms, more of what 
care the fowls have, how they are fed, 
etc., it would be very difficult for me 
to recommend any remedy. 



Yellow Blisters — The last week I 
have had three hens and a rooster 
break out on the exposed parts of the 
head, with what looked like yellow 
blisters, and in places it is as if it had 
bled and dried up. The first hen, a 
blooded Light Brahma of three years, I 
killed ; the others I have penned up by 
themselves ; have put carbolated vase- 
line on them. They seem healthy 
enough otherwise, and the breaking out 
seems to be only on the exposed parts 
of the head. Would you advise kill- 
ing them, or can thev be cured? — Mrs. 
C. .M. 

Answer : Your fowls have the chick- 
en-pox. You have done exactly the 
right thing in putting carbolated vase- 
line on the spots. That will kill the 
germ of the chicken-pox, and in about 
a week they will be well. It is rarely 
fatal e.xcept with j-oung chickens, and 
the cure is carbolic salve, applied 
about twice. A little sulphur in the 
food will hasten the cure. 

Warts on Combs and Eyes — I am 

in troul)le and I know you can advise 
me. September 24th, I hatched some 
Blue Andalusians. They have grown 
very fast, seemed extra healthy and 
vigorous until a few days ago, when 
warts began to appear on their combs 
and eyes. In one night they grew twice 
in size. I have nine and they are all 
becoming affected. What in the world 
is it and is it catching? They -have run 
at large entirely and their feed in grain 
is mostly kaffir corn. They were such 
fine chicks and I was raising them for 
l^reeders, but now feel discouraged. I 
have a younger litter, four weeks old, 
but they are all right so far. My old 
birds are fine stock and very healthy. 
These warts did not make their appear- 
ance until the chicks were eight weeks 
old,— Mrs, H. E. S. 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



-vnswer: Your chicks have the chick- 
en-pox and, I fear, of a virulent type, 
as the warts are growing so quickly. 
The cure is, to anoint the warts with 
carbolic vaseline or carbolic salve. Give 
them nourishing and easily digested 
food, adding a little sulphur, about a 
teaspoonful per day, and some chopped 
onions to their feed. It is very infec- 
tious, but rarely fatal except in the case 
of young chickens. Keep close watch 
on the smaller brood and apply the car- 
bolic salve the moment you see a spot 
on the head. After a few davs if 
weather is warm, you can wash the 
spots with warm soapsuds and a few 
drops of carbolic acid. This will hasten 
t!:: cure. 



Old Hen Dumpy — My old hen, 
the mother of all my flock, is ailing. 
She has not layed for nearly four weeks 
although her comb is quite red. She 
is a Barred Plymouth Rock. She is 
dumpy, does not care to eat or drink; 
droppings green and cream color, very 
loose. I have given no medicine of any 
kind: feed a dry mash mixed according 
to your formula, also rolled barley, 
wheat, table scraps, plenty of greens, 
oyster shell and they have charcoal, but 
do not seem to want it. Have kept 
chickens two years ; they have always 
•layed well ; have had no sickness until 
now and they have no lice or mites. I 
turned the hen loose about two weeks 
ago; ;at first she seemed better, but now 
gets weaker every da}^ I boiled rice 
and milk, added cinnamon as you sug- 
gested, but she would have none of it. 
I do not know how to make a hen eat 
what she does not want. I do not 
know what to give her and would not 
know how to make her take it if I 
did.— M. K. L. 

Answer : I think you had better give 
your old hen ten drops of laudanum 
in a teaspoonful of castor oil, and re- 
peat the dose if necessarv, in two days. 
Cut some bread into the size of dice 
and soak it in milk, sprinkling it with 
red '"'^nocr, then take the hen on your 
Ian, holding her head with your left 
hand and with your right hand put one 
of the dice into her beak and holding 
her head up, gently push the soaked 
bread down her throat. Add finely 
chopped onion to this and turn her out 
on the grass awav from the others. The 
onion is a good liver tonic. 



Feather Pulling — Will you kindly 
tell me the cause of chickens pulling 
feathers from each other and eating 
them? We feed them wheat, cracked 
corn, etc., also ground bone. — G. H. T. 

Answer : Various causes have been 
assigned for this habit, the most prob- 
able being improper rations and idle- 
ness. In some instances it is caused 
by mites or lice. As in some cases, the 
habit is due to insufficient animal mat- 
ter in the rations, or to feeding too long 
on a single kind of grain, particularly 
corn, one of the first measures adopted 
should be a well balanced ration, con- 
taining skim milk, meat bone, vesje- 
tables or green feed and frequently 
varied. The Geneva, New York, exper- 
iment station applied to the feathers lard 
or vaseline in which powdered aloes had 
been mixed. After continuing this treat- 
ment for some time the habit disap- 
peared, due to the disagreeal)le taste of 
the aloes. The skin and feathers should 
be carefully examined for lice and mites 
and if these are found the remedies rec- 
ommended for such parasite should be 
applied. 



Heart Trouble — I have a very fine 
rooster two years old. For the past 
two months he has been troubled by 
some difficulty in breathing. At times 
his comb and wattles become purple for 
two or three minutes, then the color gets 
red again. I have looked for canker 
but cannot find anything that seems 
wrong. Have used vaseline but it has 
not done any good. It seems to me 
more like asthma or bronchitis. Wish 
I could cure him for he is a valuable 
bird.— Mrs. I. G. 

Answer : I am sorry to say that your 
bird has heart-trouble. This has been 
brought on by some great excitement 
such as fighting, fright or being chased. 
It may possibly be fat on the heart, 
which weakens that useful organ. You 
might try giving him in the drinking 
water nux vomica and sulphur comp. 
2x twelve tablets to each pint of drink- 
ing water. Be careful to give him 
plenty of green food and grit, besides 
his ordinary food. Cases of this kind 
are almost incurable, but the treatment 
I have indicated may help him and pro- 
long his life. 



Indigestion — What is the matter 
with my late hatched chickens? They 
seemed all right till seven or eight 
weeks or age when the craw seemed 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



123 



to fill with water and they refuse to eat 
except when given meat scraps chopped 
fine. By holding the head down and 
pressing on the craw, a frothy sub- 
stance will run from the mouth and 
the craw seems to be empty but it will 
fill again soon as before and they die 
apoarently of starvation. — Mrs. P. T. 

Answer : Your late hatched chicks 
are dying of indigestion. It comes from 
something wrong in their feeding or 
care. The usual causes are a lack of 
grit and not enough green food, but 
there are a number of other things that 
give it ; such as too free a use of liquid 
lice killer or of distillate oil in their 
coops, sour or fermenting food, bad 
meat scrans, taking cold and lice which 
later weaken the chick so it cannot 
digest. Not knowing how you feed or 
care for your ckicks I cannot say which 
of all these is the cause of your trouble. 
Give the chicks granulated charcoal and 
remove the cause whichever it may be. 
The meat was the best thing you could 
give them under the circumstances, as 
it is the most easilv digested . 



Indigestion and Liver Complaint — 

Mv hens are on a strike, and their 
faces and combs are becoming pale or 
yellow. What is it?— T. S. B. 

Answer : You have been over-feed- 
ing, and now your fowls have indiges- 
tion. Indigestion in fowls is the cause 
of many ailments. With your birds it 
has been brought on by lack of grit, 
with not sufficient roughness (or filling) 
and too little exercise. How can in- 
digestion be prevented? By dieting. 
Feed more bulky foods, such as alfalfa, 
and less solids. A continued grain diet 
of wheat, corn, barley, if few in quan- 
tities and not varied by bulkj^ foods, 
vegetables, etc., will bring on indiges- 
tion, especially when but little exercise 
is taken. An insufficiency of clean • 
water is also conducive to this trouble. 
Clover, alfalfa, any of the green stuffs 
or vegetables, usually fed to fowls, are 
absolutely necessary preservatives of 
health. Now, as to a remedy : Your 
fowls' indigestion has taken the phase 
of biliousness. Give each affected hen 
one of Carter's -Little Liver pills, and 
give the whole flock a teaspoonful of 
baking soda in a quart of water every 
day for a week. Give no other water. 
Why do I recommend soda? Because, 
it helps to emulsify the too much fat in 
the bowels. You might give a tea- 
spoonful of Epsom salts in the water 



for a week, to carry off the bile which 
is overflowing into the intestines and 
being taken into the system. It is not 
kindness to feed your fowls every time 
they come near you. It is far kinder 
to keep them working for it and so keep 
them healthv. 



Inflammation of the Crop — I 'have 
a Buff Orpington hen that has a dis- 
ease I have never seen before. Her 
craw is swollen to several times its 
normal size and is filled with wind or 
gas. She eats but not as much as she 
should and is getting thinner all the 
time.— H. Y. 

Answer: Your hen is suffering from 
inflammation of the crop. This is like 
a very severe attack of indigestion. The 
causes of this are irregular feeding or 
too much food being taken at one time. 
Partially decomposed meat, or putrid 
food of any kind will also cause con- 
gestion and fermentation of the contents 
of the crop. The same disease occurs 
when birds eat substances containing 
phosphorus or arsenic, or rat poison. 
The feeding of too large a quantity of 
pepper or stimulating "egg food" in 
the mash will also cause inflamed crop 
as well as trouble with the egg function. 

Treatment — A clean, dry pen should 
be provided for the affected bird. 
Empty the crop of it? irritating and 
decomposing content.'? by careful 
pressure and manipulation while the 
bird is held with its head downward. 
When the crop is freed of its con- 
tentsi. give two grains of subnitrate of 
bismuth and one-haif grain of bi- 
carbonate of soda in a teaspoon of 
water. The bird should then be kept 
without food for -eighteen hours and 
then fed sparingly upon easilv digest- 
ed food, such as bread and milk. Half 
H grain of quinine morning and night 
for two or three days will complete 
the cure. 



Necks Squirm — I have a pen of 
beautiful White Rocks. I find three 
of them go off by themselves and 
mope. They drink a lot of water and 
when they do not eat their necks 
'-quirm about like a serpent and their 
crops look full but there appears' to 
be 1 othing in them. I feed mash in 
liie morning, warm with a little salt; 
w'eat at noon, cracked corn at night; 
plenty of shell and charcoal; lettuce 
v.-hen I can get it and table scraps. I 
have raised them by hand and after 



124 



MRS. BASLEVS POULTRY BOOK 



all my trouble I do liate to think that 
I may lose any. Thanking you in ad- 
vance. — Mrs. F. D. D. 

Answer — The symptomis you de- 
scribe are those or indigestion and 
may be caused by intestinal parasites, 
wrong fe^eding and lack of exercise. 
I would advise you to give them 
more green food, also mix a teabpoon- 
ful of terpentine in a quart of water 
and use ithat for mixing with the 
mash; also mlix turpentine in the 
s.ame proportion in their drinking 
water; keep this up for a week. It 
will kill the worms. As a tonic give 
therm lo drops of nox vomica in a 
quart of drinking] water. This will 
improve the digestion, and strength- 
en them. 



Influenza — I am in trouble with my 
chickens. Five of them have died 
since Monday. They open their 
mouths and gasip for breath and 
sneeze and their eyes are very watery. 
I feed wheat, cracked corn, plenty of 
green stuff and, table scraps and they 
have a good run. I always wash oui 
their drinking pans and rake out un- 
der their roosts at least every other 
niorr;ing. — Mrs. J. F. S. 

Answer — Your chickens have in- 
fluenza. They are taking cold in some 
way. Either there is a draught in 
their house or the rain comes in on 
them; a few have had the cold and 
they are giving it to the rest. Keep 
blue-stone in their water, and give 
each of them a bolus of the follow- 
ing, night and morning: Mix two 
tablespoons of lard, one tablespoon 
each of cayenne pepper, mustard, 
vinegar; mix thoroughly, add enough 
tionr to make stiff dough; roll out; 
give a bolus as large as the end of 
your little finger. Put carbolated 
vaseline up their nostrils and in the 
cleft of the mouth, and give them 
chopped onions in their food. 

Green Droppings — I have a White 
Rock pullet eight months old. She is 
dumpy, does not care to eat, her drop- 
pings are grass green and cream color 
and very loose. I feed alfalfa, cab- 
bage, lettuce, beef-scraps., blood- 
meal, bone meal, wheat, kaffir corn, 
cracked corn and they have plenty of 
sand. Sometimes I put salts, soda 
and bluestone in their drinking water, 
and sulphur and red pepper in their 
miash.— Mrs. D. A. S. 



Answer — I think you are giving 
your pullet too much medicine, and 
have upset her digestion. Put her by 
herself, give her rice boiled in milk 
with a little cinnamon added and 
Siharo grit and charcoal. Sand is not 
coarse enough for hens. Also give 
her green crisp lettuce. Green food 
does not give hens looseness of the 
bowels but keeps them in good health. 



Liver Trouble or Poison — I want 
your advise and a remedy for my sick 
fowlsi. The symptoms are, briefly 
stated: Grown chickens affected 
droop for two (ftiys, comb turns black 
and they die. Have lost nine in two 
days. 

My chickens have free range, fresh 
water and plenty of barnyard scratch- 
ing with Egyptian cosn every night. 
— C. V. N. 

Answer — ^^The symptoms you de- 
scribe denote either liver trouble or 
poison. In your case I think perhaps 
it is poison, either from rat poison, 
gopher or some poisonous weed. You 
had better hold a post mortem exam- 
ination on the next one that dies and 
then you will 'be able to tell just what 
the trouble is. 



Poisoned — Yesterday morning I 
found nine big chickens in my yard 
dead and about twelve more are dy- 
ing. What is the cause? They sit on 
the ground, do not eat and. the head 
hangs loose on the ground. The comt 
is dark and in the throat is a sticky 
slime like white mucilage. No bad 
smell; sometimes they jump a foot 
and lay down again. I fear they will 
all die. To a few I gave a teaspoon- 
ful of olive oil, and to some others 
fresh milk. I cannot imagine what 
it is. 

Other fowls in the next yard are 
not affected, and all had the same 
food.— Mrs. F. C. P. 

Answer — Your chickens have lim- 
ber necks from ptomaine poisoning. 
Give the whole flock hypo-sulphite of 
soda; dissolve one teaspoonful in a 
quart of drinking water. And to each 
chicken that is affected give a piece 
of asafoetida about the size of a green 
pea. Use the ;gium form, and repeat 
the dose the second day. This dis- 
ease usually comes from severe at- 
tacks of indigestion, caused by eating 
bad animal food, or the decaying car- 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



125 



cass of a dead animal. Putrid meat 
or putrid milk will cause it. 

Limber Neck — We have between 
200 and 300 chicks two months old 
that are badly afflicted with limber 
neck, and we cannot find out the 
cause. The first two or three weeks 
we fed them millet and Johnnie cake 
made stiff and dry. of course corn 
meal, but they began to get sick, so 
changed to dry food, consisting; of 
cracked wheat, millet, beef-scraps and 
grit, but the chicks still got no bet- 
ter, so now we are using just wheat 
and grit. They have lettuce .every 
day and often j^oung vegetables — tops 
and all. Until about a week ago they 
were kept by themselves in wire 
pens, but as an experiment my hus- 
band let them out to run and still they 
get sick. They do not all die as I 
bring them to the house as> soon as 
we find the sick ones, but from one to 
seven die nearly every day. They 
have fresh water every morning. I do 
not try to doctor them, but just keep 
them warm. I have saved some pretty 
sick ones in that way. They are such 
a bother and we have lost so many in 
that way. The flock which is the 
most affected had a habit of huddling 
when they were small, until they 
would sweat and sometimes die. Do 
you suppose that could have any- 
thing to do with the present troubles? 
—Mrs. F. L. 

Answer — ^Limber neck is due to a 
disorder of the nervous system and is 
usually the result of disturbances of 
the digestive organs from severe at- 
tacks of indigestion or from infesta- 
tion with worm parasites. Chicks are 
sometinnes affected in this manner by 
unusually hot days and nights. I 
think very probably their digestive or- 
gans were weakened by being over- 
heated when they huddled and T 
would give the whole flock plenty of 
charcoal to eat. with plenty of green 
food and animal food, and no millet, 
as millet is very hard to digest. Give 
the sick birds a small piece of gum 
asofoetida, about the size of a green 
pea. Repeat the dose the second day. 
This will usually cure. Feed them 
with bruised o-arlic or with chopped 
up onion'-. Give them grit or very 
coarse sand in boxes to assist in the 
digestion, and I think you will have 
no further trouble. 

It is possible that your chickens 
have worms. Yon had better open 



the next one that dies and examine it 
and if you find it infected, give the 
others turpentine in the drinking 
water, half a teaspoonful to a pint of 
water (giving' no other dringing 
water) or if you prefer it give a tea- 
spoonful of Castor oil with ten drops 
of turpentine in it to each sick chick. 
The chickens dislike the turpentine in 
the water but it will kill the common 
round worms if continued for a week. 



Sits Down to Eat — I wish to con- 
sult you about a hen. Her appetite is 
good, her comib is bright and healthy 
looking, and she gets about as spry 
asi her mates, but she invariably sits 
down to eat, whether soft feed or 
corn. I have shut her off from the 
others and given her a condition 
powder in one meal a day; she has 
begun laying within a week or two 
but continues weak in the legs. — • 
M. L. B. 

Answer^Your hen has what is 
called "leg weakness,' and is possibly 
suffering) also from greediness. If 
3'ou had mentioned the breed I could 
Iiave told more easily. If she is of 
the Amierican breed, possibly she may 
be over-fat; if ^lediterranean, s,he 
may have a slight amount of rheu- 
matism. In any case, give her a little 
bi-carbonate of sod:a in her drinking 
water; a teaspoonful to a quart of 
water; also some chopped onions in 
her food and- make her scratch' for 
every grain she eats. 

Leg Weakness — I am in trouble 
over my White Rock chickens. I 
only have a few, so would like to save 
them. When they are about three 
weeks old they get weak in the legs, 
and after a W'Cek or so they begin to- 
tremble like a person that is nervous. 
They eat well until the last. I feed' 
boiled egg and bread crumbs. They 
have green barley to run on. I feed 
kaffir corn at nigiht. During the day t 
feed onions and table scraps. If you 
could tell me what to do I would be 
a thousand times obliged.— Mrs. W. 
K. 

Answer — Your chickens are suffer- 
ing fromi what is called "leg weak- 
ness." Leg weakness comes chiefly 
from wrong feeding, also from over- 
crowding- at night and overheating. 

Young chickens should either be al- 
lowed free range with a hen or be 
encouragied to work and scratch for 



126 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



their food. This strengthens their 
legs. The green food should form at 
least one.-third of their diet and for 
such young chickens it would have to 
'be chopped up finely. They cannot 
peck ofif sufficient green barley. It 
soon becomes too tough for them. 
The cure for leg weakness is a little 
tonic (a few drops of iron in their 
drinking water) and plenty of green 
food and cracked wheat instead of 
kaffir corn. If it comes from over- 
crowding or overheating, either un- 
der a lien or in a brooder, you must 
rectify this. ,See that they have 
"chick grit and charcoal." 

Mange — I have a Plymouth Rock 
hen that has the under part of her 
body and legs and feet covered with 
'hard, scaley sores of all sizes from a 
bean to a coitple of inches across. 
Some are light yellow, some red and 
some purple in color. She seems to 
be all right otherwise, eats good and 
comib and head look red and healthy. 
F'lease tell me what ails my hen and 
if I can cure her. — Mrs. A. H. S. 

Answer — I think your hen has 
manse. I would advise you to kill her 
and bury deeply or burn the body be- 
cause w'heU' it is as, virulent as you 
describe, it would be very diffi':ult to 
cure and all those kind of diseases are 
exceedingly infectious. 'Carbolic 

salve at the first might have cured 
her but now it is too late and the 
time, trouble and expense of treat- 
ment, with the probability of the 
others becoming affected, would not 
pay. 



Nervous Trouble — My cockerel. 
which I want to mate with my hens, has 
some sort of a nervous trouble that I 
have not been able to overcome. When 
he gets excited upon seeing a stranger 
or any sudden fright he jerks his head 
to one side as if he had St. Vitus 
dance. Will he do to breed from? Also 
I have two hens that shake their heads 
as though there was something wrong 
with their throats ; they eat and sing 
and lay and their heads are red but I 
do not seem to cure them. When T 
swab with peroxide of hydrogen, they 
get better, but their breath seems to be 
short when they get excited. They are 
both a little too fat. I feed wheat, oats, 
corn, beets, carrots and a dry mash 
composed of two parts bran, one corn 
meal and one of beef scraps ; have an 
alfalfa lot to turn them in on and have 



never failed to get a heavy egg yield. — 
Mrs. M. A. G. 

Answer : I would advise you not to 
mate a cockerel with any nervous 
trouble to your hens. This trouble is 
usually caused from indigestion, para- 
sitic worms, defective pronagating or- 
gans or weak heart. I do not know of 
any certain cure, but you might try 
giving him some asafoetida — a piece of 
about 4 grains every night for a week. 
I would advise you to eat him instead 
of breeding from him. Your two hens 
are evidently too fat. The shortness 
of breath denotes weakness of heart 
from over-fat. You are too generous 
with your corn. 



Naked Chicks — Thinking perhaps 
you can help us I will ask you for a 
little of your time. Late in October we 
bought a hen caring for thirty chicks. 
We have fed them cracked corn, meat 
scraps, plenty of green stuff, charcoal 
and grit. They feathered out but since 
many of them have become bald, and 
the feathers fall from their neck and 
they are growing thin, still their wing 
feathers are long, making them look 
very queer. They are not incubator 
chicks, and we have examined them 
closely for mites, have dusted them for 
lice and they are quite free from either. 
What do you think is the cause and 
what can we do for them? — H. A. S. 

Answer: Your chickens are huddling 
at night, crowding too closely together. 
This makes them sweat and their 
feathers fall out. Put a little carbolated 
vaseline on their heads and cut the 
feathers of their wings as close as you 
can without making them bleed. Give 
them wheat and more meat in their 
food and try to prevent their crowding 
at night. It is the crowding and lack 
of wheat in the food, lack of protein, 
that prevents the feathers growing, and 
the sweating makes them fall out and 
will make the chickens thin. 



Over-Heated — T have a lot of 
young Plymouth Rocks. Some of them 
are as bare as my hand and a few have 
some feathers on them. They were 
hatched in an incubator. Can you tell 
me if they will ever be any good, or 
what do you think is the matter with 
them? They are not growing like my 
other ones. I feed them wheat, cracked 
corn, rolled barley, scalded " alfalfa, 
beef scraps and sometimes a mash made 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



127 



with bran, bone meal and shorts. — Mrs. 
E. M. 

Answer: Your chickens, when quite 
young, have been over-heated in some 
way, either in the brooder, under a hen 
or in the sun, and this has arrested the 
growth of the feathers and stunted 
them. They will never amount to much, 
and by greasing them with vaseline and 
continuing to feed them with the good 
food you now give them, they will, in 
a short time, feather out, but will not be 
as large as the other ones whose growth 
has not been checked. I advise you to 
fatten, kill and eat them as soon as 
possible. 



Enlarged Liver — T have noticed a 
hen mooing and eating but little for 
two or three weeks, but as I had broken 
some up from sitting, thought it the 
result from broodiness. However, as 
she got no better I separated her from 
the others, but yesterday she died. This 
morning I did as you advised, and duly 
performed the autopsy. I saw at once 
on making an incision what was the 
matter. Her liver was so enlarged that 
it occupied almost the whole cavity. I 
never saw one such a size. It was cov- 
ered in blotches of pink spots, small as 
a pin point. There was fat around the 
heart and gizzard and layers of fat 
around the intestines ; perhaps a fifth of 
an inch thick. There was plenty of 
grit in the gizzard but no food. The 
heart seemed in good condition, the body 
a good color, and flesh firm. In the 
cavities of the back is a substance, of 
which I do not know the name, that 
seems to be enlarging and hardened. 
There were manj^ eggs but very small 
and undeveloped. Is this the kind of 
liver which is used as a delicacy and 
produced by over-feeding? ]\Iy fowls 
wece fed corn all winter and were much 
too fat this Spring. In March they had 
layers of fat an in^rh in thickness. I 
did not suppose that a laying hen ought 
to have any fat inside of her. How 
should that be? I have been reading 
over with great care your article on 
"Assisting the Moult." I have about 40 
hens evenly divided between Plymouth 
Rock and White Leghorns. They are 
dropping off in their laying and begin- 
ning to lose feathers. Shall I begin now 
to reduce the feed, or wait until the 
middle of August? Should the roosters 
be put on the same diet as the hens? 
I have three acres in vineyard and corn, 
and think of turning the whole flock out 
in about a month. Will it be advisable 



to let the roosters run with them, or 
should I keep them separated ? I have a 
very nice, young White Minorca cock- 
erel. I think of mating him with ten 
White Leghorn hens ; meanwiiile had I 
better let him run with the pullets, or 
shut him off alone? Do you think when 
feeding full rations, it is too much to 
give the noon mash? Would you think 
two feeds a day preferable? Do you 
advise giving the mash morning or eve- 
ning? — G. S. H. 

Answer : Your hens certainly had 
fatty degeneration of the liver, or the 
disease which the over-fat geese have 
when their liver is considered a deli- 
cacy. She simply had been fed an un- 
balanced ration containing too much of 
the fat element, and being a Plymouth 
Rock, had become over-fat. The sub- 
stance in the cavities of the back is the 
kidneys. There are three lobes of these 
on each side. Your fattening ration 
had also affected them. So much fat 
will also affect the egg laying, will 
make small eggs and chickens will be 
weakly, as there will be prenonderence 
of fat in the eggs from which they are 
hatched. A laying hen should not be 
anything like as fat as those you de- 
scribe. About assisting the moult : I 
think as your hens are dropping off in 
their laving, you sliould commence im- 
mediately with their period of fasting. 
With hens in the fat condition in which 
yours aopear to be, the fast will ulti- 
matelv prove very beneficial. The roost- 
ers should be put on the same diet as 
the hens. It will be advisable to sep- 
arate them, leaving onlv two hens or 
pullets with each made bird. The young 
white cockerel should be keot entirely 
away from the pullets and hens until 
you get ready to mate him. Shut him 
off where he cannot see any of the fe- 
males. I think it is too much to feed 
three times a day, giving a mash at 
noon. Two feeds would be preferable. 
I prefer giving the mash in the evening, 
because then the hens go to roost with 
their croos full and in the morning are 
ready to commence scratching and work- 
ing, which will induce egg laying. 



Tumor — T have a few Leghorns, 
also Barred Rocks, and keep them in 
separate pens. One of my Leghorns is 
badly swollen in her lower parts ; that 
is, where the egg bag is. Her bowels 
are loose and what nasses from her is 
rather thin and whitish in color. Eats 
but very little, but her comb is nice and 
red ; walks with great difficulty on ac- 



128 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



count of being so very badly swollen. 
Am a great lover of chickens, and it 
hurts me to see her thus and not know 
what to do for her. If you will offer 
me a suggestion I will deem it a great 
favor.— C. J. W. 

Answer : Your lien has either a tu- 
mor or a rupture of the oviduct, and 
there is no cure for it. The better plan 
is to kill the bird and save her suffer- 
ing. 



Tumor and Dropsy — I had a White 
Leghorn hen die a week ago from an 
ailment which puzzles me. Have looked 
through what poultry books I have, 
but can find nothing touching it. The 
hen was swollen between the legs to 
an unusual size and got so bad it could 
not walk. Finally it died and, upon 
openmg it, at least a quart of water 
came away. The intestines were 'oined 
together in one solid piece. Can you 
tell me the cause and cure, as I have 
a Hamburg hen developing the same 
symptoms, and would like to save it it 
possible? — J. L. W. 

Answer : Your hen died of dropsy, 
combined with a tumor, probably ova- 
rian. There is no known cure for this, 
as by the time it becomes visible, the 
disease has progressed too far, and is 
usually only discovered after death. 
Some hens seem more subject to this 
complaint than others, and I would ad- 
vise you to get in fresh blood and keep 
the hens healthy by feeding an abund- 
ance of green food. The cause is ob- 
scure. 



Ovarian Tumor — T had a nice 
Orpington hen ; she had been laying 
each day and appeared to be perfectly 
healthy; comb red, went around seem- 
ing quite well. I feed cracked corn and 
wheat, table scraps, and the chickens 
have goon range and plenty of good 
food. About four days ago the Orping- 
ton appeared to be lame in the right 
leg. I caught her, examined the foot 
and leg, could see nothing wrong and 
she continued lame, and with difficulty 
got on the nest. To all appearances the 
leg was broken, as it was harder for 
her to walk each day. Rather than see 
her suffer I had her killed. I dissected 
her; she wa^ very fat with an alnmd- 
ance of eggs, one soft shell. I found 
in the right side of the back a growth 
about the size of a pigeon egg, which 
appeared to be part of the egg bag. The 
liver and other organs appeared to be 



healthy. I hope that you may be able 
to tell me what the growth was and if 
there is a cure for it, in case any of 
the other hens have such symptoms. The 
hen was about two and a half years old. 
Would age have a tendency to hinder 
her?— Mrs. H. R. B. 

Answer : Your hen had what is 
called an ovarian tumor. The trouble 
is very common, and yet we don't kjiow 
very much about it. I am inclined to 
think that if investigations covering a 
large number of fowls kept under a 
variety of conditions were made, it 
would be found that cases of tumor like 
this are more abundant among fowls 
kept closely confined, or fed heavily for 
egg production, than among those kept 
under more natural conditions. It is 
quite reasonable also to suppose that the 
offispring of hens heavily forced for egg 
production would show weakness of the 
reproductive system, resulting in dis- 
eases of this character. It possibly also 
may come from an injury of some kind. 
Undoubtedly some strains or families 
are more subject to it than others. There 
is no cure for it and the only preven- 
tive is to keep the hens healthy and 
bus v. 



Tribulation — T wish a little infor- 
mation in regard to a Leghorn hen that 
died yesterday. She apparently choked 
to death ; made a queer noise. We 
opened her and found at the bottom of 
her egg bag a large clot of black blood. 
Can you tell me what it was and if there 
is any cure for it? I also bought 50 
young Leghorn chicks ; they were lousy 
and most all had stuck-up behinds. T 
feed them on chick food and boil the 
water; I have about 18 left; this morn- 
ing one began to twist his neck around 
and was droopv ; T gave him Eosom 
salts. Please tell me what to do. — E. R. 

Answer: Your White Leghorn hen 
had a hemorrhage of the oviduct ; this 
is excited b" any of the causes which 
lead to congestion and inflammation 
and may be contracted by green feed 
and the suppression of egg foods, stim- 
ulants, red pepper, etc. It some- 
times occurs from trying to pass too 
large an egg. There is no cure than I 
know of, as deatli occurs before one 
finds out what is the matter. About the 
little chicks : They were badly hatched 
and I am afraid you will lose them all. 
Incubator hatched chicks having lice 
shows a filthy condition of the incubator 
and neglectfulness on the part of the 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



129 



hatcher. Give the chickens that are left 
rice, boiled in milk, adding a tablespoon 
of ground cinnamon to each pint of 
milk. Give them also an onion chop- 
ped fine and plenty of green lettuce. 
Give this in addition to the chick feed. 



Paralyzed — ^One of our young 
chickens took sick on Saturday and by 
Sunday afternoon its legs and v\'ings 
seemed to be paralyzed. They were 
stiff and it could hardly walk, and when 
it stood still it just shook as if it was 
cold, and it died Monday morning. We 
thought it may have been poisoned in 
some way. We have been feeding our 
chickens young cabbage leaves. Do you 
think that hurts them? We had two 
chickens die in the same manner and I 
think two more are going the same way. 
They stand around about two days and 
don't care about eating; and about the 
third day are awful sick, and the fourth 
day they die. IMaybe you can tell me 
what was the cause of the two dj'ing 
so we can save the rest. — Mrs. J. E. 

Answer : I wish you had held a post 
mortem examination of the first chick- 
en that died. It might have saved the 
lives of the others. With your meager 
description of the symptoms, j^ou give 
neither age nor breed, nor tell the waj^ 
they are fed, or cared for. I can but 
hazard a guess at the cause. I think 
it is worms in the intestines. The rem- 
edv is for the whole flock. Thirty drops 
of turpentine in a pint of water, allow- 
ing no other water to drink. Give this 
fresh as often as necessary for a week 
and it will usualh' exterminate the 
worms and cure the chickens. It 
is either worms or some kind of 
poison, but not knowing how you 
feed I cannot tell you whether it 
is poison or not. The young cab- 
bage is very good for chickens unless 
you have been poisoning to kill the 
cabbage worms. 



Abnormal GrCwth — I have a hen, 
and its crop hangs down so far that 
when it walks its feet are always hit- 
ting it. We cut it open once and only 
the corn and feed it had eaten came out 
of it. I have thought I would kill it, 
but I was afraid it might be a tumor 
and that the hen would not be fit to 
eat. She seems healthy otherwise. I 
want to ask you if turkeys get off the 
nest as often as the hens do when they 
are setting, for my turkeys never get off 
the nest unless I take them off. What 



is the best to feed voung turkevs? — 
Mrs. J. A. M. 

Answer : Your hen has a pendulous 
crop. This is usually caused by over- 
feeding of mash at some time in her 
Hfe. It sometimes can be cured by a 
surgical operation. I would advise you 
to kill and eat the hen, as in time the 
crop will become sore. You can easily 
see before you eat it if a tumor has de- 
veloped, in which case bury it. Turkey 
hens are very faithful setters. Some 
will starve to death on the nest so it 
is best to take them off every day. You 
will find full instruction for feeding 
young turkeys in an article in this book. 



Diphtheric Roup — Elaving derived 
many useful ideas from your writings I 
take the liberty to ask your advice re- 
garding a disease which has come upon 
my chickens. The first symptoms seem 
to be a sneezing or squawking sound as 
if the chicken had a beard in its throat ; 
then a white membrane forms over the 
windpipe and the ej'es close up and 
lumps break out around the comb. The 
lumps finalh' break and the eyes and 
nose run. Both Barred Rocks and 
White Leghorns are afflicted. The Bar- 
red seem to suffer the most. — Mrs. R. F. 

Answer : I am sorr}' to say your 
fowls have diptheric roup. It is a very 
infectious disease and if you have chil- 
dred j'ou had better keep them away 
from the fowls. Spray the mouth, 
throat, nostrils and cleft in the mouth 
twice a day with peroxide of hvdrogen. 
Give the fowls a quinine pill, four nights 
in succession, and once a day a bolus of 
the following mixture : Two spoons of 
lard, one each of mustard, cayenne pep- 
per and vinegar ; mix thoroughly, add 
flour enough to make stiff dough ; give 
a bolus as large as the first joint of your 
little finger once every twenty-four 
hours. Put a piece in a quart of water, 
and allow them no other drinking water 
for a week. 

Rhuematism in the Feet. — I have a 
very fine Buff Leghorn rooster and 
he seems to have rheumatism in his 
feet. Do you know anv cure? — Mrs. 
J. M. S. 

Answer — Rheumatism may result 
from long exposure to cold and 
moisture; it may be produced by over- 
feedinp- of meat: induced through the 
nnder-feedina' of vegetable food and 
is helped along by previous rheumatic 
tendencies of ancestors. 



I30 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Treatment — Bathe the feet and 
shanks with the following: One cup- 
ful of vinegar, one of turpentine and 
a heaping teaspoonful of saltpeter, 
mix in a bottle and shake well before 
using. For internal treatment there 
is no better remedy than Iodide of po- 
tassium. This is given in the drink- 
ing water, fifteen grains of Iodide of 
potassium to every quart of water. 
Give in small dishes so that it all may 
be used while fresh and thus avoid 
waste from having to throw away any, 
because it is mixed with dirt. Com- 
mon cooking soda, one level teaspoon 
to each quart of water, or salicylic 
acid, one grain a day, has given good 
results, but the Iodide is the best and 
most satisfactory. Give plenty of 
green food. 



Roupy Catarrh — What must I do 
for my young chickens? They are 
White Rocks, three months old, and 
I think a great deal of them. About 
one week ago I noticed one of them 
act as if it was blind in one eye and 
on taking it up to see the cause I 
noticed that one of its eyes seemed 
sunken in the head and badlj' swool- 
en all around that part of the head. 
A friend told me it was sore-head, 
and to kill it at once, which I did. 
but now find two others of the flock 
afifected the samie way. 

I write to ask you to kindly help 
me and tell me if I should kill them, 
or if you know of a remedy for the 
disease.- — A Reader. 

Answer — Your chicks have "swell 
bead," or roupy catarrh. It is an in- 
fectious cold, and they should be sep- 
arated from the rest and treated im- 
mediately. Mix on tablespoonful cas- 
tor oil; half teaspoonful each of tur- 
pentine, kerosene , camphorated oil 
and four drops of carbolic acid. Squirt 
a drop up each nostril and into the 
cleft of the mouth and rub the whole 
head with it. Also give the sick 
chicks a pill of quinine and one of 
asafoetida (one grain of each) and 
half a teaspoonful of cayenne pepper. 
Repeat every other night. 

If the shoulders or under the wings 
are soiled with the discharge from tne 
eyes, wash off carefully with a disin- 
fectant. 



with the leg extended out in front 
fromi the knee; they cannot sit down 
like a chicken on a roost. What is 
the trouble and what medicine shall 
I use?— W. B. B. 

Answer — Your birds have rheu- 
matism. It is usualy caused by ex- 
posure to cold and dampness. The 
buildings where the fowls live and 
roost should be thoroughly dry, free 
from draughts and well ventilated. 
Affected birds should have frequent 
change of ration with plenty of green 
feed. Begin treatment with a dose of 
Epsom salts, 20 to 30 grains. The fol- 
lowing day add a teaspoonful of bi- 
carbonate of soda to the quart of 
drinking water. Bathe the affected 
joints with the following linament: 
Mix half cup of turpentine with half 
cup of vinegar and add a heaping tea- 
spoonful of saltpetre; shake before 
using. The birds which are seriously 
affected would be better killed than 
treated. 



Swell Head — I have decided to ask 
your advice about my Buff Orpington 
chickens. Their eyes are sore and 
swell completely shut. One hen's eye 
seems to be gone. — Mrs. E. E. 

Answer — Your hens have what is 
called "swell-head" or sore-head. It 
is a species of roup. They are evi- 
dently taking cold from sleeping in 
a draught or from being, in too hot 
a house at night and coming out into 
the cool morning air whilst still warm, 
or from lice which carry the infection 
from one to the other. The remedy 
is to first cure the evil, that is stop 
the draught or get rid of the lice, 
then bathe the head with per-oxide 
of hydrogen and' water in the morn- 
ing and rub it over with carbolic 
salve at nig'ht and give a pill of qui- 
nine (one grain) every night for a 
week. 

Feed plenty of succulent green food 
and meat. 



Rheumatism — I have some chickens 
who are down in the legs. It looks 
like rheumatism. They can hardly 
walk and when they eat they sit down 



Specks o£ Blood — There is a speck 
of 'blood in the whites of the eggs 
laid by some of my chickens. Would 
you please tell me what causes it and 
what can be done for it? I have about 
two dozen hens in the back yard, and 
with the exoeptioni of a few table 
scraps, they are fed on wheat and a 
good balanced ration. They seem 
healthy, have plenty of green feed, 
but are. I think, fatter than they 
should be.— Mrs. E. P. G. 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



131 



Answers-Blood spots in the al- 
bumen of the eggs results from a 
slight hemorrhage which has gener- 
alfy occurred in the upper two-thirds 
of the aviduct. They are the result 
of great functional activity and con- 
gestion of the blood vessels of tlie 
reproduction organs. They are ex- 
cited by any of the causes which lead 
to congestion, or inflammation, and 
this ought to be counteracted by green 
feed, less animal food, and suppres- 
sion of condiments. A little Epsom 
salts in the water (a teaspoonful in 
a gallon of water) or small doses of 
tincture of iron might help the cure. 



Swell Head — 'Sly chickens are dying 
off awfully. Many of them are good 
sized pullets. Their heads seems to 
swell and they go blind and just drop 
ofif. Some of them open their mouths 
and stretch and act as thought some- 
thing was choking them, but I cannot 
detect anything. They had mites but 
have none now. We have a good 
yard for them, and an alfalfa patch 
and some shade trees. I feed them 
well, and am at a loss to understand. 
'My neighbors on either side of us 
have the same trouble. — Mrs. F. K. 

Answer. — Your chickens have what 
is called "swell-head' and roup. They 
have either caught it from taking- 
cold or from the lice which they used 
to have, or by infection from the 
neighbors. I think probably there is 
a draught in their sleeping quarters, 
from a crack or a knot hole or it 
may be wrong ventilation. Stop 
these up and be sure the chickens do 
not live or sleep in a draught. Rub 
their head with carbolated vaseline, 
and give each of those afifected a 
quinine pill every other nieht for a 
week, and add a little poultry tonic 
to their food. I think as soon as you 
stop whatever may be the cause of 
their taking cold you will have no 
further trouble. Be sure to keep the 
sick fowls away from the balance of 
the flock. 



Like a Run Around — I have quite 
a lot of chickens and every once in a 
while one of them has one eye swell 
up like a run around. It keeps get- 
ting larger, finally it breaks. The 
lien seems to get poorer all the time. 
I kill them as soon as I see it com- 
mencing to swell. Now I would like 
to ask what it is and what causes it, 



and is there any cure for it? — Mrs. 
R. A. 

Answer — Your hens have either 
roup or chicken pox. In either case 
put carbolic salve on the swelled part 
of their heads, and give the fowl a 
pill of quinine, also add a little sul- 
phur and chopped onions to their 
mash at night. Be sure to keep the 
hens and the hennery free from lice 
and clean. 



Swelled Eyes — What is the best cure 
for swelling of the eyes in half-grown 
chicks? They have the colony houses 
and are fed according to the method 
advised, but they seem to catch cold. 
It is very contagious, and seems to be 
running through the flock. — J. F. S. 

Answer — Your chickens are taking 
cold, probably from a draught of some 
kind in their sleeping quarters. Find 
out the crak or hole which is causing 
the draught and stop it up. Put blue- 
stone into their drinking water — a 
piece the size of a navy bean in one 
quart of water. Grease their heads 
with carbolated vaseline. Separate 
the sick from the well, for it is very 
infectious. Those that are sick should 
have a pill of quinine for three nights 
in succession — i grain. 



Swell Shut and Water — Will you 
kindly tell me the cause of sore eyes? 
My chickens' eyes swell shut and wa- 
ter. I also have turkeys; their eyes 
swell underneath. — Mrs. C. J. N. 

Answer — Your chickens and tur- 
keys have lice and are taking cold. 
They are taking cold from, either 
sleeping in a draught or sleeping in a 
place that is too close and- hot, so 
they take cold when they come out 
in the morning. Remedy the cause 
and use one of the many roup cures, 
and also get rid of the lice. Lice go 
to tbe eyes to drink and so spread the 
disease. 



Something in the Throat — It would 
be a great favor to me if you would 
let me know what to do for my chick- 
ens. They are cross-breeds and run on 
open range, where there is plenty of 
good water and green alfalfa and oth- 
er green grass. I have been feeding 
them clean new wheat; all they 
would eat. They are six months old, 
but have comimenced to get sick; the 
first was taken sick a week ago; acted 



132 



^IRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



like it had somethin,^ caught in the 
throat; opened 'bill and made a noise, 
but seems to be well now. Another 
commenced last night; made a noise 
all night like it wanted to crow; is 
very sick, comlb very dark, droops the 
head slightly, eyes shut, no watery 
appearance and no lice or other ver- 
min. I have examined its neck and 
cannot &ee or feel anything like diph- 
theria in mouth or throat; no dis- 
charge from nose; crop empty. — F. 
P. C, Mexico. 

Answer — I think your chicks must 
have got and eaten some seed or 
burrs with beards on them, and this 
has formed an abscess low down in 
their throat, or ^even in the gizzard. 
Sometimes they stick in the 
throat. After a time they will get dis- 
lodged and pass through the chick 
without injury, but if they stick in the 
gizzard, blood poisoning comes on. 
the comlb turns black and they die. 
When I was in O^klahoma the tarantu- 
las sometimes bit a hen. She would 
fall down paralized. and act as though 
she were dying. I gave one drop of 
aconite in milk, and they always re- 
covered under this treatment. Do 
you think your fowls have been stung 
by centipedes, etc.? 



Tuburculosis — A year ago I had 
the nicest Black Minorcas that any- 
body ever laid eyes on, but, alas! one 
after the other I had to kill. First 
they get lam^e on one foot, then iheir 
combs get very dark, alrnost black 
on the points; their appetite is poor 
and they get as light as a feather, and 
when I cut them open their liver al- 
most fills up their whole insides, and 
the whole liver is thoroughly sprink- 
led with little white kernels; some- 
times as big as a good sized head of 
a pin, sometimies as large as five 
cents, and I attend to them so good. 
Now, can you tell me what diseasic 
it is and how to prevent it after this? 
I feed lots of green stuff, milk, meat, 
wheat, barley and occasionally a 
mash of lots of carrots. — Mrs. M. R. 

Answer — I am sorry to say your 
Minorcas have chicken tuberculosis. 
You gave an accurate description of 
the disease, and I am very sorry to 
have to tell you that there is no cure 
for it when once it has commenced. 
You may he able to prevent the young 
ones catching it by moving them on* 
to fresh ground, and thoroughly dis- 



infecting the old yards and hen coops. 
I would advisic you to write to the 
Director of the Experiment Station. 
University of California. Berkeley, 
California, and ask him to send you 
the Bulletin on tuberculosis of fowls. 
No. i6i. In it you will find a full 
description of the disease and the 
steps necessary to take to stamp it 
out. It is like consumption in the 
human family, and is considered in- 
curable. 



Ulcers — I have a hen whose feet 
and legs are quite swoolen, and crack- 
ed until raw. I had her setting. In 
about ten daya I noticed her wattles 
and comb getting very pale, then she 
would not stay on her nest as she 
ought to. I examined her and' found 
her legs, where the feathers start, full 
of mites all filled with blood. I no- 
ticed at the samie time there was a 
small sore between her toes; thought 
she had picked it; changed her nest, 
but she would not set in the new nest. 
In ahout two weeks her feet and legs 
commenced to swell, and the sore 
commenced to get larger. Now it 
covers her whole foot; she also has 
a sore on her neck that o-ets larger. 
It looks like the samie thing; both 
sores are ;getting larger. I have used 
vaseline, carbolic salve, and bathed 
and bandaged her feet, but to no 
purpose. Can you please help me? 
Give the cause, and if contagious. 

Can you tell what is the matter 
with mv young chickens three months 
old? They seem droopy. My chick- 
ensi all have plenty of range, green 
feed and clean water. — Mrs. P. M. 

Answer — Your hen should be killed 
to put her out of her miisery. From 
your description of the trouble, she 
has ulcers, which may be turbuculous. 
and if so, they are contagious,' and 
there is no cure for them, so the best 
thing you can do is to kill her, and 
'burn her body. Do not bury it. 

I think your chickens are droopy 
from having mites ' and perhaps lice 
also. You should spray the houses, 
or whitewash them frequently, and 
once a week dust all the chickens with 
som,e good insect powder. If you 
are not careful your little chicks may 
be bitten hy the same lice and mites 
that were on the old hen and' they 
many catch the same disease. 



Vertigo — Beinq- an interested rend- 
er of your question department, 1 take 



CAUSE AND CURE OF SICKNESS 



133 



the liberty of asking you about my 
little chicks. They have a queer dis- 
ease that I never saw before. They 
commence to hold their heads to one 
side, keep twisting their necks until 
they fall down and roll over and seem 
in a kind of fit, and then jump up; 
seem better for a while and then go 
through with the same performance un- 
til they die. They peep as if in pain. 
I have lost several. I feed cornbread 
and sour milk curd and they run in 
the orchard. Do you know what it is 
and is there a cure for it? They have 
no vermin. — Mrs. R. B. L. 

Answer : Your chickens have vertigo. 
This is usually caused by acute indi- 
gestion, from wrong feeding, from sun- 
stroke, from intestinal worms, from poi- 
son or from lice. Overcrowding the 
chicks also has a tendency to bring it 
on. I have known of several cases 
similar to yours from the chicks hav- 
ing eaten putrid meat. The best treat- 
ment is a little Epsom salts in the water, 
about ia teaspoonful to a pint of water. 
Give this as their drinking water. Give 
plenty of fresh clean watef and green 
food. If you think it is worms, put a 
teaspoonful of turpentine in a quart 
of the drinking water or mix their mash 
with it and give it also to them to drink. 
This will kill the worms. If you think 
it is from poison, give each chick a pill 
of asafoetida, about a two-grain pill 
or even smaller if the chickens are very 
small. 



Wind in Crop — Will you please 
tell me the cause and remedy of my lit- 
tle chicks, from three to four weeks 
old, having a gas gather in their crops? 
When the crop is pressed, wind comes 
from the mouth and they stand around 
and gasp, but otherwise do not look 
droopy. They eat well, but in three or 
four days die. I lost quite a number 
last spring, almost every case being 
fatal. I have a hen with young ones 
and I would liVe to raise them without 
this trouble.— B. C. 



Answer : The wind in the crop 
comes from indigestion. Indigestion 
comes from lice, colds, dirty water, and 
chief of all from wet mashes or from 
wrongly balanced food, and lack of 
hard, sharp grit to grind the food. I 
do not think the chicks with the hen, 
if she is allowed free range, will get it, 
but if there are any symptoms of it, 
put some lime water into the drinking 
water and give them pounded up char- 
coal. Give them also sweet skim milk 
to drink as well as water and plenty of 
nice, crisp lettuce to eat. I am sure if 
you keep them quite clean, feed clean 
dry chick feed with plenty of green 
lettuce, grass or clover, cut up fine, 
you will not have any wind on the 
stomach with your chicks. A little bi- 
carbonate of soda in the drinking water 
will sometimes help, but prevention is 
the best cure. — R. W. 

White Comb — My fine Orpington 
rooster is developing a peculiar disease. 
A few months ago he was in the pink of 
perfection, but his comb has become all 
covered with 'white spots, as though he 
had dandruff, and it spoils his appear- 
ance. I feed your well proportioned 
mash, wheat, alfalfa, crushed green 
bone, corn, lettuce and cabbage ; a mash 
every morning and corn or wheat for 
the evening meal. He is vigorous and 
active, the only trouble being with his 
comb. If you will kindly tell me how 
to treat him for this trouble, it will be 
highly- appreciated. — E. R. T. 

Answer : Your rooster has what is 
called ''White comb." It usually comes 
from close air in the hennery and a 
total absence of all green food. It is a 
contagious disease and may be imparted 
from bird to bird, probably also from 
mice, rats, cats and dogs to birds. 
Young birds appear to be more suscept- 
ible to this disease than old ones. Put 
carbolated vaseline on the comb and, 
in the drinking water, use twelve tablets 
of nux vomica and sulphur comp. 2X to 
each pint of drinking water. Continue 
the treatment until cured. 



LICE, MITES, TICKS AND WORMS 



Body Lice — T have about lOO Whit^ 
Leghorn chickens and I find that they 
have a large body louse, large yellow 
ones; what can I do to get rid of them? 
I think they are keeping my chickens 
from laying as they should.— Mrs. B. W. 

Answer — Paint the bottom of a box 
or barrel with a good lice killer; put a 
little straw in to keep the paint from 
the feathers, then put the chickens m 
and cover them three hours. Then 
examine the hens and pull out all the 
feathers that have nits (lice eggs) on 
them, putting the feathers into a little 
can of coal oil. Then dust the hens with 
a good insecticide once a week or until 
you are sure all the lice are dead. Be 
careful to give the hens a spot of ground, 
well spaded up, mellow and a little damp. 
They will bathe in this and usually keep 
themselves clean. 



of boiling water; add to it a gallon of 
coal oil and a pint of crude carbolic 
acid; churn for twenty minutes or until 
you wish to use it. Take one quart of 
this top solution and add it to 9 quarts 
of water. Dip the hens into this, being 
careful not to allow any of it to go into 
their eyes or mouth, but thoroughly wet 
every feather to the skin. This will kill 
every living louse and if repeated, in 
about five days will probably kill those 
that are hatched out in the meantime 
and prevent their laying any more 
nits. Tobacco water has also been 
strongly recommended as a dip, and 
chloro-naphtholium used as directed 
■ on the bottle. 



Dipping Hens — Would you be so 
kind as to let me know about dipping 
hens, etc? I have a flock of some five or 
six hundred. I notice some of them 
have lice and bunches of nits on their 
feathers. Whenever I have caught a 
hen I have greased her well but this 
would take too long to go though the 
bunch. Is there any dip that would be 
strong enough, and do no harm to the 
birds, that would kill the nits with one 
dipping? — W. L. 

Answer — Lice are supposed to hatch 
out the nits every five days and when 
but a few days' old commence to lay 
again and so keep on breeding indefinite- 
ly. Dr. Salmon says it has been esti- 
mated that the second generation from 
a single louse may number 2500 indi- 
viduals and the third generations may 
reach the enormous sum of 125,000 and 
all of these may be produced in the 
course of 8 weeks. I do not know of any 
dip that will kill the nits with one dip- 
ping. Dr. Salmon recommends a dip of 
one per cent carbolic acid solution, or 
using creolin as it is equally efficacious 
in killing insects and is less poison to 
the birds. It is used in the strength of 
two and a half mixed with a gallon of 
water. I have used very successfully in 
the summer time when the weather is 
warm the kerosene emulsion made as 
follows : Dissolve one bar of soap or 
one pound of soap powder in a gallon 



The Sand Flea — How can I rid my 
chickens from a small insect known here 
as the sand flea? I have tried coal-oil 
mixed with lard without effect. The 
hens scratch their heads so they become 
sore and some have died ; others have 
had to be killed.— Mrs. F. A. F. 

Answer — Those fleas are very hard to 
get rid of. Spray the henneries well 
with either the kerosene emulsion or 
good hot salt water, and while the 
ground is still wet, scatter on it, air- 
slaked lime. Those hens that have sore 
heads', should have carbolated salve put 
on them, after swabbing them off with 
corrosive sublimate. This will kill the 
fleas and cure the sores. Be careful not 
to let any of the corrosive sublimate get 
into the eyes or mouth of the fowls. 



Stick Tight Fleas — We have noticed 
a tick or louse on a few of our chickens 
and have discovered some of the insects 
on the perches. They resemble small 
black beads and are firmly embedded in 
the skin. On some of the fowls we 
have used for the table we noticed a 
few red blotches on the skin. We would 
like to know how to get rid of the in- 
sects, particularly how to get them out 
of the hen-house. — An Inquirer. 

Answer — You have the stick tight 
fleas in your hennery. They are very 
hard to get rid of, being in some places 
a perfect pest. A friend of mine lost 
500 out of 700 chickens last fall from 
this. I told him to spray very thorough- 
ly with salt and water and he purchased 
600 lbs. of salt, scattered it all over the 



LICE, .MITES, TICKS AND WORMS 



135 



hennery and yards and then turned the 
hose on them for several days in suc- 
cession. He tells me now there is not a 
stick tight flea on the place. I advised 
him to get some corrisive sublimate di- 
luted with alcohol at the drug store, take 
on old tooth brush and carefully apply 
with it the corrosive sublimate on any 
fleas he might see on the chickens, be- 
ing careful not to allow any of the solu- 
tion to get into the chickens' eyes (it 
would blind them) or into their mouths 
as it is very poisonous. You can paint 
the perches with this ; it will kill every- 
thing it touches. 



Head Lice — This' time I write in 
desperation, hoping you may be able to 
give me a remedy. It is head lice I am 
flghting, and after working for almost 
five months, I am as far off from being 
rid of them as at first. I have done ev- 
erything that I have ever heard of. I 
still find they have head lice and red 
mites besides. I hope no other beginner 
has had the trials I have had. — Mrs. W. 
F. K. 

Answer — The red mites live in the 
houses or coops, except when they are 
feeding off the chickens, usually at night. 
The cure for them is to spray the coops 
thoroughly and constantly. You can keep 
them out of the coops by spraying once 
every three weeks, but if they once get 
in, you will have to spray twice a week 
until j'ou get entirely rid of them, then 
once every three weeks, to keep rid to 
them. The head lice live on the heads 
of the chickens. They lay two or three 
white silvery nits (eggs) at the root of 
the feather. The eggs hatch in about 
five days after they are laid by the lice, 
consequently to completely destroy them, 
you should treat the chickens that have 
them, at least once a week. The best 
way I know of is to take an old tooth- 
brush, a bowl with nice hot soapsuds in 
it and a few drops of the best carbolic 
acid; brush the chicken's head with this, 
being sure to touch all the lice and 
mites. This, I know, is an excellent 
remedy for I have tried it. Another 
given by a friend of mine is, get the 
druggist to mi.x some corrosive subli- 
mate with the best pure alcohol, take 
the tooth-brush and brush the chickens' 
heads with this, being very careful not 
to let any of this get hito the eyes (or 
it will blind them) or into the mouth, 
as it is very poisonous. This will not 
only kill the head lice and their nits, but 
it will also kill stick tight fleas, ticks, 
and any insects. It is verv difficult when 



once the pests get into henneries or on 
chickens, to get rid of them. It is far 
easier to keep the enemy out by con- 
stant and thorough cleaning at frequent 
intervals, especially in the summer time. 
I find using tobacco stems for making 
the nests of setting hens, a good pre- 
ventative; besides this, I see that all the 
fowls have good dust baths in damp 
and mellow earth. 



Hump Themselves — I will have to 
come to you with my sick chickens. It 
seems to be chicken raisers' only refuge. 
I have lost several half-grown and 
whole-grown. They kmd of hump 
themselves all together, do not care to 
eat; do not stir around. I never no- 
ticed any bowel trouble; it looks to me 
like their heads turned dark; live sev- 
eral days. What shall I do?— L. H. E. 

Answer — It is very difficult to diag- 
nose a case like yours with so little in- 
formation about it, but from your de- 
scription of the chickens humping them- 
selves and appearing sleepy, I think they 
have worms. You should open one and 
make a thorough examination; then you 
will know what really is the matter. If 
it is worms, give them thirty drops of 
turpentine in a pint of water. Let them 
have no other water to drink for a week 
and I think it will cure them. Possibly 
they may be taking cold and very prob- 
ably may have lice. Examine them and 
dust them, and try to discover what is 
giving them cold. Give them a little 
poultry tonic and follow my directions 
for the general care of fowls. 

Mites— We are fighting mites, but 
apparently with no success. We hired a 
man who makes poultry ranch spraying 
a business. We paid him $10 and he 
guaranteed to rid the place of the pests, 
but they are worse than ever. He uses 
lime, sulphur and carbolic acid. Is there 
any way corrosive sublimate could be 
used as a spray, and would it be safe 
for the hens in the houses? How long 
would the hens need to be kept out after 
the spraying was done? Am having the 
worst possible luck with my chickens. 
Have probably hatched 550 chickens this 
year and have less than 200 now. When 
a week to ten days old they begin to 
droop, refuse to eat, and starve to 
death. What is the matter? No bowel 
trouble ; no cold ; no lice, or only a few. 
Does cholera ever attack such young 
chickens, and if cholera, would they not 
have bowel trouble ? Would greatly ap- 
preciate an immediate answer, as the 



136 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



mites get all over me and drive me 
nearly frantic. In putting down eggs in 
water-glass; must they be infertile eggs? 
— Perplexed. 

Answer — The thing that is killing your 
little chickens is not cholera, otherwise 
they would have bowel trouble ; it is 
only the swarms of mites. If they drive 
you nearly frantic, think how the chicks 
must sufifer. The mites simply drain the 
life out of them. The corrosive, subli- 
mate can be put on with a spray, but 
it is dangerous to do so, as if it splatters 
into the person's eyes who is sprayiiig, it 
may blind him for life. One pound of 
this costs $1.25 and that is sufficient to 
made 120 gallons of the solution. As it 
takes some time to dissolve in water, it 
is usual to dissolve it in alcohol. I have 
used it dissolved in alcohol to paint hen- 
neries and nest boxes and it will destroy 
all insect life. You must turn the hens 
out of your henneries for several hours, 
or until the walls are dry. The eggs 
need not necessarily be infertile, al- 
though it is better to have infertile eggs, 
but above all things, they must be abso- 
lutely fresh. One stale egg may spoil 
the whole crock full. 



Ticks — We have a pest the like I 
never saw or heard of, so I come to 
you to know what they are, and if 
they are common in California; they 
occupy every crack and crevice in the 
hen house, never stay on the chickens 
during the day, so far as I can find 
out, but just simply bite them at 
night until the flesh looks skinned in 
places. Now for a description of 
them. They are dark grey, flat and 
have plenty of legs. I have seen 
them as large as the thumb nail. — 
Mrs. M. R. 

Answer — The pest you speak of are 
ticks. They are indeed a terrible 
pest and you cannot possibly succeed 
with chickens unless you get rid of 
them. They are very common in 
some parts of California. I have had 
specimens sent me from widely dif- 
ferent places, and at a TaTge farmers' 
or grange convention the subject of 
getting rid of them was discussed by 
a'bout sixty farmers and professors of 
the California University and no defi- 
nite remedy was found. However, 
some of those who have applied to 
me have by my advice used corro- 
sive sublimate — eight ounces to twen- 
ty gallons of water. Painting the 
henneries with this was the only rem- 



edy found to be effective. Kerosene, 
distilate, whitewash and everything 
else proved useless, but the corrosive 
sublimate did kill them. Care must 
be used in handling this, for it is 
poisonous, and if any gets into the 
eyes of the worker, it may blind him. 
These ticks are very much like bed- 
bugs, and I have seen them almost as 
large as and resembling a watermelon 
seed, after feasting on the chickens; 
before that some of them were as thin 
as a piece of paper, lying flat between 
the shingles on the roof where it 
was almost impossible to get at them. 
The only remedy is the persistent use 
of the corrosive sublimate. 



From Wild Birds — Some years ago 
mv fowls became afflicted with a 
round worm, also tape worms, and in 
one article you mentioned several 
remedies such as santoine, turpen- 
tine and tincture of male fern. I dug 
up the yards and seeded to green feed 
but all to no purpose; it has prac- 
tically driven me out of business. 
Last Spring I invested in some out- 
side stock (just hatched baby chicks), 
but they also became infested al- 
though they were on new land. How- 
ever, I managed to keep down those 
pests by occasionally dosing the hens 
with the above mentioned medicines. 
We do not feed anything unclean to 
our fowls and it always has been a 
puzzle to me where such worms 
came from. 

A few days ago our house-cat 
brought home a small bird, which she 
'began to devour on the house porch, 
but leaving the intestines, out of 
which crowled two good sized round 
worms such as fov^'ls have. As we 
live in the woods, do you think this 
has anything to do with it? I am al- 
moist afraid to start my incubators 
this season, as it may only result 
in future failure. — W. E. B. 

Answer— You|r fowls undoubtedly 
.p'et the worms as the wild birds do, 
from the droppings or eggs of worms 
from the other birds. By the persist- 
ent use of turpentine, using thirty 
drops in a quart of water, or mixing 
it in that proportion in the food, for 
a week at a time, you ean get rid of 
them. Also disinfect the ground. 
The only thing that I can see is for 
you to keep up this treatment, for 
a week every two months, giving tur- 
pentine either in the food or water. 
I would not be discouraged because 



LICE, ^IITES, TICKS AND WORMS 



137 



that is a sure remedy and by watch- 
ins: and noticing the droppings, you 
need not fail in rearing; the chickens. 



getting the worms from and cut of¥ 
the source of supply. 



From Pigeons — My chickens' giz- 
zards are affected by red worms about 
the size of a pin. All the stock I 
raised last year seem affeoted al- 
though the eggs came from different 
places. I have the Brown Leghorns, 
Brahmas and R. I. Reds. I feed all 
the various grains, plenty of greens 
and good meat and bone. The only 
thing you recommend that I have not 
fed is charcoal, still as chicks they 
got it in the chick feed. I have 
given them turpentine in food and 
water at various times and it seemed 
to have the desired result, but today I 
learned different, the gizzard is pene- 
trated and has a sore spot caused by 
these worms. All the stock in differ- 
ent yards are affected. 

I get plenty of eggs and the chick- 
ens look good, combs nice and red. 
nevertheless I find them all affected 
the same way. — Mrs. G. S. L. 

Answer — I have been through the 
same trouble myself- and so can help 
you. The difficulty is to find the 
source. I found out that my chickens 
were getting the worms or the eggs 
of the worms from neighboring pig- 
eons. The droppings of the pigeons 
contained the eggs of the worms and 
in a short time the droppings of the 
chickens also had them and the other 
chickens ate them and so on they 
kept increasing. First of all I gave 
the chickens the turpentine which I 
recommended to you. A teaspoonful 
in a quart of water. 'Mix the food 
with that water, also put a teaspoon- 
ful in a quart of the drinking water 
and allow no other water for drink- 
ing. Keep this treatment up for a 
week. Meanwhile clean up the yards 
by having them either ploughed un- 
der or dug up and a crop of some 
kind planted, something that will 
grow quickly, such aa wheat or bar- 
lej', and as far as possible destroy 
the birds that are bringing you the 
trouble, for I cannot but think it 
must be pigeons or some other wild 
birds. The worms will kill the youna: 
chickens, but they do not always kill 
the older fowls. Sometimes the 
worms come from unclean or spoiled 
food, from "webby" grains and bad 
animal food. You will have to dis- 
cover for yourself where they are 



Intestinal Worms — I wish a little 
information and advice in regard to 
a valuable Buff Orpington cockerel I 
own. He has become mopy and goes 
away under the trees by himself, and 
has lost over half of his weight in a 
month. He eats like a horse, though, 
of everything I give my hens, but 
shakes hi;s ^head an awful lot, as 
though something was wrong. I 
looked in his throat and it looks all 
right. He has changed in color from 
a light buff to a very dark red since 
acting unwell, and has grown to be a 
homely, dopey bird, from a real beau- 
tiful lively one a shore time ago. — 
M. J. Q. 

Answer — I think your Buff Orping- 
ton Cockerel has intestinal worms. 
You had better give him 25 drops of 
spirits of turpentine on a lump of 
bread, or in a spoonful of water, and 
follow that immediately with two tea- 
spoonfuls of castor oil. Keep him 
shut up so you can watch the drop- 
pings and remove and burn or bury 
them deeply. If you do not find 
worms in his droppings, give him ten 
drops of tincture of male-fern on a 
lump of sugar, followed in an hour 
by a dos^ of castor oil. This is for 
tape-worms. Both the remedies 
should be given after twelve hours or 
more fastinsr. 



Bantam AfTected — I have a little 
hen, bantam, in whose droppings I 
noticed what look like wormns. She 
IS thin and looks like she has catarrh. 
Can you help her? Also a Plymouth 
Rock rooster who has a film over his 
e3'es and sleeps all day. begins to take 
exercise about sun down; appetite 
fair. I feed every variety of chicken 
food alternating, and keep shells, 
charcoal and green food, and they are 
not fenced in. — J. L. 

Answer — Your little bantam hen 
undoubtedly has worms., as you see 
them in her droppings. Your Ply- 
mouth Rock male bird also has them, 
for sleepiness is one of the chief 
.symptoms of worms in the intestines. 
The best cure I know is turpentine; 
ten drops in a teaspoonful of castor 
oil, after the chickens have fasted 
twenty-four hours. 

If you have other chickens and 
think they may have worms, you had 



138 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



better give the whole flock some tur- 
pentine in their drinking water. 
Thirty drops of turpentine to a pint of 
water. Do not let them have any 
water without turpentine in it for a 
week. 

Several Kinds — I am in despair and 
it is lice, lice, lice. We have Brown 
Leghorns and as they will not sit we 
borrowed a setting her» and she only 
stayed with us long enough to give 
our hens a supply of. grey head-lice. 
When we discovered them we went 
to work with a lice killer, sprayed the 
coops, ground and nests, put the 
chickens in a box and left them three 
hours. We also used crude oil, 
poured gallons on the ground, paint- 
ed nests, roosts, etc., but still the lice 
stayed on the hens' heads. Last 
week we bought six Buff Orpingtons; 
yesterday we found they were alive 
with body-lice, yellow lice, especially 
around the vent; there were thou- 
sands; then we examined the Leg- 
horns, found they were infected also. 
What shall we do? Do you think it 
would hurt them to wash them now 
with the kerosene emulsion? Am 
afraid it might give them a cold. — ■ 
Mrs. C. S. B. 

Answer — What I should do were I 
in your place would be to get some 
buhach powder, rub it weH into the 
chikens' heads for the head lice, and 
well into the fluff under the wings and 
on the backs for the body lice, then 
put the hens, six or a dozen at a time, 
into a large size dry-goods box, at 
the bottom of which is a newspaper 
thoroughly painted with a, good lice 
killer; cover the top of the box with 
a carpet and leave them in for three 
hours, then look them over thorough- 
ly and pull out ever> feather that has 
nits on it. The nits hatch out about 
every five days, so in a week's time, 
look the hens over again, powder 
them again, and again put them into 
th.e box painted with the lice killer. 
Two applications should cure them. 
After this, once a month, at night, 
powder them with bubach and look 
them over occasionally, and if neces- 
sary, go through the performance 
again. You can paint the roosts with 



lice killer, but do not put any in the 
nests, for it will not only flavor the 
eggs but will kill the germs and make 
the eggs unhatchable. The best thing 
to use for the nests is a kettleful of 
boiling water with a large handful of 
salt added to .it, or scalding soap- 
suds, putting in fresh straw, or better 
still, making the nests of tobacco 
stems. You can get these for 25 cents 
a gunny-sack full. 

Do not risk washing the hens ex- 
cept in the hottest summer weather. 



Spray for Houses and Dip for Hens 

— Last summer I found a recipe in 
one of your articles for spraying hen- 
houses. I used it to good advantage 
but have misplaced the recipe and 
cannot remember the mixture exact- 
ly. It was composed of coal oil, car- 
bolic acid and soap, with a certain 
proportion of water. If ' you will 
kindly send it to me I will appreciate 
it.— C. W. 

Answer — I gladly send you the re- 
cipe which is excellent. I have used 
it for ten years or more. It will kill 
fleas, lice, mites Q^r any insect pests in 
the henneries. It will also thorough- 
ly disinfect the premises from infec- 
tious diseases and if used for a dip 
for hens in warm, sunny weather, will 
rid them of lice and will assist the 
moult: 

Dissolve one pound of hard soap 
(or soap powder) in one gallon of 
boiling water, remove from the fire 
and add immediately one gallon of 
kerosene and one pint of crude car- 
bolic acid. Churn or agitate violent- 
ly for twenty minutes or until you 
want to use it. If the oil and water 
separate on standing, then the soap 
was not caustic enough. Add to this 
ten gallons of water. 

I keep the stock solution on hand, 
dip out a quart and add to it ten 
quarts of water and use it for spray- 
ing the houses once every three weeks 
in summer and every month in win- 
ter. Putting it on hot in summer and 
slopping it well into dark and dusty 
corners will kill fleas, which are ex- 
ceedingly troublesome on sandy soil 
in this part of the country. 



FEEDING IN GENERAL 



Feeding System — I am not perfectly 
satislied with my feeding system and I 
follow yours on the food question. I 
note that you advise dried blood and 
other food dried in the oven, green cut 
bone and bone meal. Would you ad- 
vise boiled liver, lungs and scraps in- 
stead of prepared meat scraps? Are 
ground clam shells good in place of cut 
bone? Could there be any danger from 
feeding too much ground shell? Should 
gravel be furnished to chickens to pick 
from?— D. F. 

Answer : Boiled liver and lungs chop- 
ped fine are e.xcellent for fowls. I prefer 
them to prepared meat scraps. They 
must be fed while fresh as spoiled meat 
may poison the fowls. Clam shells 
cannot take the place of cut- bone. 
Crushed oyster and clam shells contain 
lime which is very good for making 
egg shell. There is no danger of the 
hens eating too much of this. Gravel 
or grit should always be furnished to 
chickens. 

Animal Food — I would like to 
know what you would suggest in the 
way of animal food for my Plymouth 
Rocks. Have only eleven hens ; they 
have free range and running water. 
Some are laying, but I do not give any 
meat or blood meal. As we only go 
to town about once per month it is 
rather hard to bring out anything in 
that line and keep it fresh. I feed 
rolled barley, and lately have given 
them a mash of shorts or bran, and 
some cayenne mixed in it. Hope you 
will suggest something, also how would 
you feed them this winter ? They have 
plenty of grass on their range. — Sub- 
scriber. 

Answer : Fresh meat is best for hens. 
Can you get rabbits or squirrels or go- 
phers for them? If not and you cannot 
obtain any of the good egg foods from 
the supply stores, in your part of the 
country, you might try the following, 
which I have proved to be excellent : 
■Take ten pounds bone meal, ten pounds 
dried blood, five pounds linseed meal, 
two pounds sulpher, two pounds pow- 
dered charcoal, one-half pound cayenne 
pepper and one-half pound salt. Mix 
and keep. Put a half pint in your mash 
every day for twenty hens. When you 



feed this, feed no meat scraps and do 
not salt the mash. You will get the 
mixture right if you remember that the 
combined weight of the ingredients is 
thirty pounds. This is simple and cheap. 



Bad Meat — I had twelve laying 
hens, they averaged seven eggs a day, 
were healthy and never were sick until 
I bought five cents worth of green 
ground bone from a wagon that passes 
my • door. It was wet and slimy, and 
smelled, but he said it was all right. I 
gave it to the chickens at noon ; fed 
them nothing else then. At four o'clock 
I went out and found two dying and 
six more droopy and by eight that night 
had lost eight. Next day two large Buff 
Orpington hens died. I looked for 
some of your remedies giving asafoetida 
pills and the soda you spoke of in the 
water. I showed the bones to the 
butcher and he said he never heard of 
such a thing as spoiled meat poisoning 
chickens. He sold it when it smelled 
like that all the time.— Mrs. D. M. 

.A.nswer : That meat poisoned your 
chickens evidently It is called ptoms- 
ine poisoning. Butchers sometimes put 
formaline or some preservative on the 
meat which has a very poisonous effect 
on chickens, but yours were undoubt- 
edly poisoned by the putrid meat. You 
had better not buy anj^ ground bone 
unless it is quite fresh. 



Blood Meal — Will you pease tell 
me how much blood meal to put into 
the mash for thirteen chickens, or 
in other word.Si, what proportion for 
each hen? — L. S. 

Answer — Half an ounce per hen ev- 
ery day at this spring season of the 
year is about what thley fneed of 
blood meal mixed in the mas'h. Weigh 
out enough for the thirteen hens and 
measure that in a cup or by a spoon, 
then you will know how much by 
measure. 



Analysis of Barley — Would you 
kindly let me know what the chemi- 
cal analysis of barley is, in its com- 
position? It is sometimes more con- 
venient to use it than other grains, 
and I M'ant to know its value as a 
food for poultry. — F. I. D. W. 



I40 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Answer — The chemical analysis of 
principal grains and poultry foods in 
California are given in full by Frof. 
M. E. Jaffa in hisi most useful Bulle- 
tin No. 164, published by the College 
of Agriculture, Berkeley, California. 
(This Bulletin is free to residents of 
this State.) Prof. Jaffa gives as the 
analysis of rolled barley: Digestible 
nutrimients in 100 lbs., protein _ 9.3. 
carbo-hydrates 519.5, fat 2.2, nutritive 
ratio I. 6.9. Barley has about the 
same nutritive ratio as plump wheat. 
I wouldi advise you to send to the di- 
rector of the Exeprimental Station, 
University of California, for the Bul- 
letin, 164, as by means of this little 
book you will find it easy to balance 
all your rations. 

Balanced Ration — Will you please 
send me a balanced ration for White 
Leghorns? I have, perhaps, 125 hens, 
but I get only six or eight eggs. I 
will 'have to buy all the food. I have 
a half acre patch of alfalfa and plen- 
ty of good water; keep it running into 
a s.latted trough all the time. Have 
been using white-wash with crude car- 
bolic acid and kerosene tor mites and 
other vermiin. My hens roost in trees 
and are looking fine; plumage white 
and glossy, combs red, but no eggs. 
I have houses with good roosts in 
which I put my chickensi from 'brood- 
ers, but in a short time they go to the 
trees to roost. My hens have the 
range of forty acres if they wish but 
it is salt grass pasture. — A. C. 

Answer — If you will tell me what 
igrains and what feed of all kinds for 
fowls you can get the cheapest in 
your part of the country, I will glad- 
ly write you out a balanced ration, 
composed of thos^e grains; this will be 
your cheapest plan. From what you 
say of your hens' beautiful plumage 
I think t'hey must be nearly through 
the moult. Leghorns take longer to 
moult on account of their close, hard 
plumage than the American or Asiatic 
breeds, and they do not lay plentifully 
until the new feathers are fully ma- 
tured. To hasten their laying, give 
them! more animal food than you are 
doing; increase it carefully, but feed 
them more. The onionsi will have to 
be chopped and you will 'have to feed 
them rather sparingly when the hens 
are laying, or they may flavor the 
eggs. Onions are very good for 
growing chicks, ducks and turkeys, 
but must ibe fed sparingly to laying 



hens. Hens that roost in the trees 
are apt to get damp in the winter 
time, and will therefore not lay as 
many eggs a,Si if they were kept dry 
at night. They will also need more 
food, consequently in this climate it 
is best for them to roost under a roof. 



Beet Tops— Will you kindly tell 
me if beet tops are a good green food 
for ducks? Also for fowls and tur- 
keys? Are they as nourishing as al- 
falfa? My bens are not laying well. 
The eggs have suddenly dropped ofif 
and I did not know but what the cause 
might be beet tops. — ^J. S. Y. 

Answer — In (September one is glad 
to get anything green for the fowls, 
ducks, geese or turkeys, to eat. Al- 
miost anything green is better than 
nothing, 'but alfalfa contains more 
protein than any other green food 
except w*hite clover. The per cent 
of protein in white clover is 15.7 and 
in alfalfa 14.30 while in beet tops it 
is only 1.3. By this you will see that 
alfalfa is worth about 14 times as 
much as beet topa. There is about as 
much protein in alfalfa as in wheat 
bran. Ynn complain that your hens 
do not lay. I think probably they 
are moultino-. You cannot expect 
hens to lay all the time without taking 
a rest. 



Dty Hopper Method — I write you 
regarding the dry hopper m-ethod of 
feeding. How much space do you 
leave at the bottom for the feed to 
come through, and how wide do you 
leave the space for the chickens to 
eat out of? We made one but its not 
a success, for the box is bloody from 
their comibs hitting against it. They 
stand and eat all the time and do not 
p'o and drink as you say yours do. — 
D. S. M. 

Answer — I had the same experience 
with hoppers injuring the combs of 
the fowls, and now I make my hop- 
pers like those used, at the Maine 
Experiment Station, simply a box 
with a roof over it. The box isi 
twenty-four inches long and eleven 
inches wide. The sides are cut like 
a gable, the highest point being six- 
teen inches high. The gable roof 
keeps the food dry and the hens 
waste scarcely any of it. The roof 
lifts off or can be slid 'back to fill it. 



Dry Mash— Will you kindly inform 
me asi to the best m.ethod of feeding 



FEEDING IN GENERAL 



Ml 



alfalfa meal to hens and pullets? I 
use hopper constantly filled with dry- 
mash consisting of bran, shorts, feed 
meal and beef scraps, accessible at 
all times, and would much prefer add- 
ing the calfalfa to this.. Or would 
you advise soaking it in water and 
feeding it separately? The fowls get 
grain twice a day, and now if I add 
the alfalfa to the mash what propor- 
tion shall I make it? Also, is it as 
well to add the charcoal, two or three 
per cent, to the mash or feed separ- 
ately? I wish to simplify the routine 
work as much as possible. — Mrs. 
O. K. 

Answer — I advocate adding the cal- 
falfa meal to the dry mash. It would 
make a very good ration to simply 
add one part of calfalfa meal to your 
present mash, mahing it one part 
each of bran, shorts, feed meal, beef 
scraps and calfalfa meal. I feed this 
with excellent results, but at first the 
hens did not like the calfalfa, so I 
cunly added one iron spoonful, in- 
creasing the dose every day, adding 
one more spoonful until, within a 
month, they were having the right 
proportion. You can mix the char- 
coal in the sam^e way. but I prefer to 
keep it separate with the grit and 
the crushed shell. 



jump at. but scratching is the natural 
and 'best exercise for -developing the 
egg organs. 



Exercise for Fowls — I was greatly 
interested in an article of yours on 
feeding. You say, give a hen a chance 
to work and no matter how fat. etc. 
Now what interests me most to know 
is just how you manage to give them 
plenty of work in a limited space. 
We, who occupy only a village lot. 
will be greatly helped if you will 
tell us how to keep hens 'busy in such 
limited quarters. — G. P. C. 

Answer — To keep hens 'busy, give 
themj what is called a "scratching 
pen." Put a 12-inch board across, one 
corner of your lot and fill that full of 
good 'wheat straw or hay; scatter all 
the igrain you feed in that, and the 
hens will work all day digging out 
the grain; every grain they scratch 
out they will bury two and so will 
keen up the exercise. If you are 
feeding the hopper method, put the 
hopper at one end of the pen and 
the water vessel at the other end; 
this will give them the exercis^e of 
walking back and forth. You can 
also hang up a cabbage for them to 



Ration for Twelve Hens — I take 
great pleasure in reading your ar- 
ticles. One thing I have failed to 
find and that is a good balanced ra- 
tion; many writers say, feed a good 
balanced ration, but few of us new 
beginners know what a good balanced 
ration is. We are just as apt to over- 
feed as to under-feed. Would you 
kindly give me formula for a good 
ecrg ration? In giving ration, kindly 
state quantities of each kind of feea 
u&ed in ration, amiount to be fed to 
twelve hens, whether to be fed wet 
or dry, morning or night; also amount 
of grain for twelve hens; in other 
words, a full day's egg ration for 
twelve hens; when to feed, how to 
feed and quantity for daily ration. I 
have some White Plymouth Rocks, 
over eight months old, large and well 
developed, but only two of them 'have 
comm;enced to lay. I feed morning 
mash of 2 parts bran, i shorts., one 
barley meal, one cornnieal, one alfal- 
fa meal, ^ blood meal. Wheat at 
night, about i>^ pints for twelve 
hens; good clean yards and houses; 
fresh cut kale at noon. — W. S. F. 

Answer — The ration you are now 
feeding is a very good one, but at this 
time of the year (early spring), I 
would advis.e you to double the 
amount of blood-meal in the mash. 
I would feed the mash perfectly dry. 
without moistening it in the least, 
in tJie morning; the green feed at 
noon, and the wheat at night, or I 
would reverse it, feeding the wheat 
in the scratching pen in the morning, 
green food at noon, and the mash 
slightly dampened with table scraps 
you may have, at night, giving the 
hens at their supper timie, what they 
will eat up clean. Pullets that are 
ready to lay will somerimes retain 
their eggs if tbey do not have com- 
fortable nests; also sometimes they 
require a slight shock or stimulants 
to start them laying. I find chili 
pepper seeds excellent for starting 
the laying, or failing to get this, a 
teaspoonful of red pepper three times 
a week for a dozen hens, will often 
start them laying. The ration you 
are feeding, if you add more blood 
meal (or animal food) is a well bal- 
anced ration for eggs. 



142 



MRS. BASLEVS POULTRY BOOK 



Tomatoes — Do tomatoes tend to 
make the hens quit laying? — J. W. 

Answer — Tomatoes will not do the 
hen.si any harm unless fed in very 
large quantities. There is not much 
nourishment to them and consequent- 
ly they will not improve the laying 
qualities; otherwise a reasonable 
amount will benefit the hens. 



Formula for Feeding — Your formu- 
la for feeding — two parts bran, one 
part cornmeal, one part alfalfa meal, 
one part shorts, one part beef-scraps 
— is the simplest I have ever seen, 
so shall try it. 

1. W.'ill the same formula hold 
good with hens with free range but 
no green food? 

2. In case they have access to 
fresh alfalfa hay, would it be neces- 
sary to use the alfalfa meal? 

3. 'Could I substitute .sihorts or 
mdddlings for the meal in case they 
are cheaper, and if so, in what pro- 
portion ? 

4. Does the balanced ration keep 
up the egg yield during moulting or 
is it necessary to add oil-meal, or 
some similar meal during that period? 
—Mrs. G. H. G. 

Answer — 'The same formula is. good 
for hens with no green food, but it is 
miuch better to give them green food, 
or roots, beets, turnips, carrots, 
pumpkins, or some succulent vege- 
table if possible. 

2. No, not absolutely necessary, 
but I always continue t'he alfalfa meal 
so the hens may not forget the taste 
of it, as it is sometimes difficult to 
break them into the hatbit of .eating it. 

3- .You could not substitute shorts 
or mdddlings for it. 

4. During the moult, add oil-meal 
or lin.s.eed meal, about one-fourth ot 
one part, to the feed . This ripens the 
feathers, makes them fall Dut easier 
and grow more quickly. 



For Young and Old Stock— I am 

verv miuch interested in your articles 
and_ would like to ask vou for a little 
advice. Being away from home all 
day, I have to feed in the morning 
enoneth to do all day. This I can 
manage for the old stock by feeding 
scratch food in the Htter and dry 
mash in hoppers. But how can I 
manage the growing stock? Please 
give a formula for dry feed. Do 
you consider the scratch food sold 
by the poultry houses good food for 



the young stock? My chicks will 
not eat the baby chick food after a 
week or ten days. I also give them 
lawn clippings or lettuce every even- 
ing. 

Is a handful of scratch feed to the 
hen once a day enougli where they 
have the dry mash and table Sicraps? 
Is cracked corn good food to feed 
alone to young stock? I have Rhode 
Island Reds.— R. L. P. 

Answer — Your questions relate 
principally to the feeding of the 
young stock, and you do not say 
whether you want to keep them for 
fattening for the table or for future 
egg layers. There is of course a dif- 
ference in t'he way of feeling, Oir 
rather in the quality of the food to 
be given to them. However, I will 
tell you the way I feed for egg laying. 
As soon as I think the little chicks 
will eat whole wheat 'I add it to the 
baby chick feed, a small quantity. If 
they pick it up quickly I add more 
each day and in a few days I give also 
some kaffir corn or finely cracked 
corn. It should be finely cracked as 
it is difficult of digestion. When it 
is too long in digesting t!he corn 
ferments in the gizzard and that gives 
the chick diarrhoea, which often 
proves fatal. We never want to over- 
tax the digestion of a chick, so I give 
corn carefully. This applies to the 
last question in j^our letter — it is not 
good to feed corn alone. It has been 
clearly proven that chicks do better 
grow more quickly and mature ear- 
lier if they can have a great variety 
of seeds to eat. This is the reason 
we prefer to buy the chickfeed al- 
ready mixed from the supply houses. 
They have greater facilities for get- 
ting a variety of grains than we have. 

When the young stock is old 
enough to eat th.e wheat and kaffir 
corn they can be fed as you do the 
old hens, only remember to give them 
nice, clean litter to scratch in. It 
will need renewing oftener than that 
of the old hensi, for if it gets foul and 
they pick up some of their own. drop- 
pings you will soon have a set of 
sick (Chickens. Feed the grains in 
the scratching pen to the little chicks 
and also give them in a hopper bran, 
alfalfa meal, corn meal, ground bone 
and either granulated milk or dried 
blood in. equal proportions. The lit- 
tle chicks will prefer the grains in the 
sc'ratchina: 'pen and eat 'thO'S.e the 
first, which is just what they want, 



FEED'ING IN GENERAL 



143 



but if they are hungry they will go 
to the hopper. Most of the poultry 
supply houses now make an excel- 
Lent scratch feed; they realize the 
need of it and are able to mix it 
scientifically. I always buy from them 
and if I think there is too much corn 
and that my fowls will become too 
fat, I say "Pleasie economize the 
corn." You will find most of the 
poultry supply houses willing to mix 
the scratch food just as you want it. 
You are feeding the mature stock all 
rig'ht. One handful of the scratch 
food in the litter is about rigiht for 
the hens. The green food is quite 
important, the lawn clippings should 
be of clover or a.si much clover as 
possible, for the blue grass becomes 
so hard and ^stifif as the summicr 
continues that there is not much 
nourishment in it and the hens will 
not eat it. Lettuce is good but is 
sometimes quite expensive and diffi- 
cult to get, but there is another green 
food t'hat has been found excellent 
and is within the reach of any one. 
This is sprouted oats. Take half a 
bucket of oats, pour warm water on 
them and leave them covered all 
night, then spread them in boxes. 
Any box will do. Have the oats 
about three inches deep and keep 
them wet. In four or five days there 
will ibe a mass of tender green 
sprouts. The hens will eat eagerly 
of this. A friend of mine 'has also 
done this with barley for many years 
with great success. This green food 
is as s^'ood for the young stock as for 
the old. 

In your place I would feed as you 
do, throwing scratch food (a handful 
to 'each fowl) in the litter in the 
early morning, keepinsr the dry masb 
in the hopper, and feed the green 
food in t'he evening. Some of it may 
be left till morning, but will not wilt 
much and they will eat it the first 
thing. Be sure they have plenty of 
water and have it shaded from the 
sun, eitber in a box on its side or in 
some sort of shelter. 



Mixing Foods — -I want to ask you 
if there is any good reason for not 
mixing foods at -the same meal. Prof. 
Jafifa of the U. C. said on one occa- 
sion that it was best not to mix foods 
— in feeding wheat, to feed that alone; 
t'he same of barley or of corn. Make 
eith.er an entire meal. T have ob- 
served in feeding my chickens that 
they seem to enjoy a variety of grains 



fed together. Which method would 
you think best? 

I am feedfing rolled biarley dry. 
Would you think it better to soak it? 
I give the mash at noon, dry, and 
green feed morning and evening. The 
fowls seem to like the green feed 
better at those times than at noon. 

Would you set eggs from well 
grown White Minorca pullets that 
are now nearly eight months old? 
They are now with a rooster of the 
same age; or if not now, would it 
be safe to set them after they are 
nine months old? — G. S. H. 

Answer — The reason Professor 
Jaiifa thinks it best not to mix foods 
is because somie hens will pick out all 
of a certain grain in a greedy man- 
ner, and by giving only one grain at 
a time, they are forced to eat what 
he chooses to give them. I would 
not venture to differ from so learned 
a man, but like you, I notice my hens 
enjoy a variety, so I give it t'hem, 
and for the little chicks, I am posi- 
tive a great variety is by far the best 
for them. I found that the hens en- 
joyed in occasional feed of soaked 
barley, so I poured scalding water 
over a few pailsful of barley, covering 
it with gunny sacks to keep in the 
steam and when thoroughly soaked, 
fed it to the hens. 

I would not set eggs from such 
young pullets. I would wait until 
they are nine or ten months of age; 
especially as they are mated with a 
cockerel of their own age. The off- 
spring of immature fowls is often 
weakly and delicate. I 'have found it 
much more satisfactory to hatch only 
from two-year-old 'birds. Then you 
have the foundation of a vigorous 
flock of fowls, and I never hatch 
from M'editerraneans of less than a 
year. It really pays better and is 
much less anxious work having only 
vigorous chickens, chickens that can- 
not help but grow and develop as we 
want them. 



How Much to Feed — Can you tell 
me how much feed an average Leg- 
horn, should have in weight with a 
free range of two acres of alfalfa? 
Is green ground bone necessary all 
the year round or only in the winter? 
My "bens will not lay and I may not 
be feeding right, although a few 
Wyandottes I have are too fat, but 
they get exactly the same food as 
the Leghorns. I have 72 hens and 



144 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



only got 12 eggs yesterday. Am not 
satisfied with the results and desire 
to have them do better. 

Answer— An average Leghorn hen 
should have in weight for every 
])Ound weight of hen an ounce of 
food. As Leghorns weigh about five 
popnds each, they would require 
about five ounces of food each per 
day. Animal food of some kind is 
necessary for hens if you want them 
to lay. If you can give them milk 
in large quantities, that will give 
them all the animal food necessary. 
Green ground bone is, of course, the 
best food, but it is very difficult to 
keep it fresh and sweet in the sum- 
mer time, therefore dried bone and 
dried blood, or beef scrap or milk 
must take the place. A hen requires 
about half an ounce of green ground 
bone every day or of the dry stufif 
(bone and blood) half an ounce every 
other day. If the fowls have plenty 
of green food and are not laying well 
give them more animal food. Per- 
haps your Leghorns are two years 
old, in which case you had better get 
younger fowls, as their days of great- 
est usefulness are over. 



Feeding for Market — What sh ill we 
feed young cockerels to prepare them 
for market? 

Our turkey hens are still _ laying. 
Will they lay next year in time for 
hatching season, say January of Feb- 
ruary? Of course I do not expect 
you could tell exactly what a turkey 
hen would do, but would like your 
idea of it. If I thought they would 
not lay before March, I would rather 
sell them . What would you advise? — 
S. L. J. 

Answer — For fattening your cock- 
erels, coop them in a small place, so 
they will not exercise. Feed them 
three times a day a mash composed 
of one part each of corn meal (feed 
meal), bran and rolled oats, with a 
little charcoal, and mix it with milk, 
if possible. Take away the food in 
fifteen minutes, leaving only water 
and grit before them; give them all 
they will eat of this, and in from two 
to three weeks they will be delicious, 
fat and juicy. The last week add five 
per cent linseed or cotton seed meal. 

Your turkeys that are laying now 
will moult late and probably not com- 
mence to lay again before March or 
April, although as you say, one can- 



not be very certain what a turkey hen 
will do. 

I do not think it would be advisable 
to shorten their ration of meat. Tur- 
keys require more meat and less car- 
bonatious food than hens, and I am 
afraid if you increase the corn, be- 
fore you want to fatten them for the 
market, you will have liver trouble in 
the flock. Be very careful how you 
increase the corn or corn meal. 



How Much Grain — I have been 
feeding three times a day grain morn- 
ing and night and a mash at noon. I 
feed a good handful of Kaffir corn, 
wheat or Indian corn in the scratch 
pens:. I have a mixed flock; I cannot 
well use the dry mash. How much 
of the grain should I give if I only 
fed once a day? I have fifty or sixty 
hens kept only for eggs and no good 
way of weighing grain, so please state 
quantity per hen and not weight. — ^C. 
A. B. 

Answer — It is a good rule to feed a 
pint of grain for every dozen hens, the 
grain to 'be buried in the scratching 
pens, so they will have to dig it out. 
Give all the green food, clover, lawn 
clipping's, alfalfa, lettuce, cabbage, 
vegetables, that they will eat, and one 
tablespoonful of green cut 'bone for 
each hen, three times a week. You 
do not mention how you make your 
mash. Remember that a hen needs 
animal food, green food and cereals; 
that is the balanced ration that will 
give plenty of eggs at all times. 

What to Feed and How — Will you 
kindly tell me what to feed my fowls? 
am a stranger in California anc 
cannot make my fleck pay for its feed. 
Four months ago I bought 25; hens 
and two cockerels (Buff Orpingtons), 
ten four-months' pullets and twelve 
iMinorcas. The pullets have never 
layed, the hens only a few eggs. They 
have new 'houses and are in an or- 
ange grove 100 feet by 65 feet in two 
pens. I take the Minorras out of the 
trees each night. I feed an egg food 
sold at the supply house here. Grains, 
alfalfa meal, etc., is in the egg food. 
The hens have dust baths and I paint 
the roosts with a lice killer. I get 
no eggs; one cockerel rattles in his 
throat. The leading poultryman here 
•has been up and can find no fault. 
Will you please tell me what and how 
m/uch, and at what time of day they 
should be fed? They are high priced 



FEEDING IN GENERAL 



145 



fowls and I want to make them lay 
eggs. The grove is kept cultivated 
during the summer and everything is 
new. It seems to be only a question 
of food and exercise. I get so many 
different opinions I do not know what 
to do; some say they are too fat, 
ofhers not fat enough. How can I 
make them scratch any more? I- 
would like to feed as cheaply as pos- 
sible. Where could I get the Cali- 
fornia Experiment Station Bulletin? 
—Mrs. L. S. 

Answer — Your fowls, especiallv the 
Orpingtons, should be laying well. It 
is as you say. a question of feed and 
exercise. I find the best results with 
Orpingtons is to feed grain in the 
scratching pen in the morning; one 
small handful scattered in deep straw 
for each hen. I k^ep the following 
mixture in a 'hopper, or box, before 
them all the time; also I give them 
crushed oyster shell, charcoal and 
granulated bone in a hopper by itself: 
Mix two quarts of bran, one of corn 
mleal, one of alfalfa meal, one of beef 
scrap, or of granulated milk. To this 
I add. on cold days, a tablespoon of 
ground red peppers, and when they 
are moulting, half a cup of linseed 
meal. 

If you feed in this way, you cannot 
fail to have eggs. Besides this, I give 
the hens lawn clippings, table scraps 
and refuse vegetables. Hens do muoh 
better in this climate when they can 
have plenty of green food. .■Vll the 
bulletins of the Agricultural Experi- 
ment Station can be had by writing to 
the Director of the Station. Univer- 
sity of California, Berkeley, !Cal. They 
are free to residents in this state. 



Broken Class for Chickens — Have 
started in poultry in a small way. 
Have had very good success so far. 
However, 'tis somiewhat of a trial to 
get enough gravel or grit for a good 
sized flock on a small lot. Now. 
what I want to know is, is pounded 
glass fit to feed hens? Two of my 
neighbors have advised its use in the 
poultry yards, but I am afraid it 
would act on the chickens the same 
as it did on foxes we used to poison 
with it up in the wilds of Wisconsin. 
—J. G. F. 

Answer — Broken glass or broken 
crockery make a very fair substitute 
for grit and gravel. It should be 
broken not smaller than a grain of 



wheat and have three sharp edges or 
corners to each piece. In using glass 
be sure not to take pointed pieces 
like slivers 'because they may pierce 
the crop or gizzard. For several 
years when I could not get grit I 
used broken crockery for the chick- 
ens and I know it does well. 

Substitute for Green Food— Will 
you kindly tell me what would be the 
quickest and best vegetable for green 
food I could grow for my poultry? I 
planted a patch of white clover but it 
does not seem to grow at all. Is alfalfa 
meal a good substitute where green 
food cannot be had? — G. K. 

Answer : An alfalfa patch is a good 
thing to have for poultry, but if you 
cannot have either clover or alfalfa, 
plant for the little chickens, lettuce, and 
for the older ones, kale, swisschard, 
cabbage, beets, etc. These in the order 
in which I have mentioned them are the 
best foods that I know of. You. of 
course, must judge what will grow best 
in your sestion. Alfalfa meal is a very 
fair substitute for green food, but of 
course does not come un to the crisp 
succulent fresh growing greens. 



Lack Green Food — T have three 
pens of White Plymouth Rocks and 
what bothers me is I only get from four 
to six eggs from them. They all look 
fine. I think they are rather fat. As 
to feed, I give them a small handful of 
grain in the morning in deep straw, 
either wheat or barley ; about eleven a 
dry mash — eight quarts bran, four 
quarts middlings and nearly a quart of 
beef-scraps ; at night I give them the 
dry grain again. Once in a while a 
tablespoon of pepper in their mash. 
They are not troubled with lice or mites, 
and have grit, oystershell and coal be- 
fore them all the time ; also good clean 
water. Can you advise me how to feed 
them so as to get them down to busi- 
ness ? — J. B. 

Answer: What your hens lack is 
green food. At least one-third of a 
hen's food should be green — clover, al- 
falfa or some succulent vegetables. They 
cannot do well upon tlie absolutely dry 
food j'ou are giving them. Add the 
green to your present ration au'l you 
should get eggs. 



Millet Seed — Can you tell me what 
makes my chickens that are from ten 
weeks to three months old, droopv? Is 
millet seed good for little chicks for the 



T46 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



first two or three weeks? I mean mil- 
let seed alone. — Mrs. P. E. N. 

Answer : When chickens are droopy, 
it is a sign that they may have either 
lice, worms or indigestion. If you are 
feeding millet seed, that may account 
for it. Millet seed is very' hard, round 
and slippery, and passes through the 
gizzard and intestines without being 
digested, and I have known of several 
chickens dying from it. A little used 
in their food may not hurt them, but 
an exclusive diet of millet is certain to 
cause trouble. 



Pumpkin Seeds — Are pumpkin seeds 
injurious to fowls? If so, what would 
be the symptoms? We feed alfalfa 
hay, beets, carrots and mangels and 
our hens are veritable egg machines. 
I do not think our White Plymouth 
Rocks can be 'beaten for size, vigor 
and egg production. — Mrs. A. E. W. 

Answer — I have never found pump- 
kin seeds injurious to fowls. Mine 
are very fond of them. If they were 
injurious they would give the nens 
indigestion and looseness of bowels. 
This would be caused by the pumpkin 
seeds; remaining too long in the giz- 
zard and fermenting there. 



Ration for Laying Hens — Our chick- 
ens are the White Leghorns and they 
are doing fairly well, at the same time 
I think they would do tetter if I 
knew exactly what to do for them. 

Some time ago I killed one that 
was droopy and found it was too fat. 
I had been feeding Kaffir corn, so I 
cut that out and substituted wheat. I 
see the improvement now. 

At present t'bey are laying fine, but 
the droppings stick to the feathers 
very 'bad. I am surdf it is not caused 
by lice, as I dust them with buhach 
and also paint the roosts with coal 
oil. I feed wheat in the morninig 
and a mash of bran, onions and red 
pepper mixed with hot water at night. 
They al-so 'have two lots and a lawn 
to run on. Do you think they get 
enough green feed? The range they 
have is all the green food that I give 
them. 

One of the eggs was covered with a 
soft shell-like substance in addition to 
the egg shall and I had to assist a 
hen pass some of them today. They 
have plenty of shell and grit, so how 
can T remedy this? 

Will say that I received 202 eggs 



from ten pullets in March, and from 
three sittings of eggs received 80 
per cent hatch. — A Reader. 

Answer — You are not feeding a 
rightly balanced ration. An egg-mak- 
ing ration must be composed of ani- 
mal food. The proportion that gives 
the best results isi about one part ani- 
mal food to three parts grain or its 
by-products and two parts green 
feed. Now, it- is impossible for me 
to know if your hens are getting 
enough green food because your lawn 
may be dried up or of tough blue- 
grass, or it may 'be succulent green 
clover. Bluegrass, as the summer 
goes on, becomes almost worse than 
no green food at all. And if you have 
hens confined on two lots I know 
by experience the lots are soon eaten 
clean of any succulent grass, and by 
this time without seeing your prem- 
ises I feel sure that your fowls are 
not getting enough green food, and 
not any meat, so that the ration is 
unbalanced. The pepper is a strong 
stimulant and good only in winter. 
It forces the egg organs for a time, 
but it will result in a complete break- 
down sooner or later. 

On close examination you will find 
that under nr on the soiled feathers 
there are nits, the eggs of the lice. 
Pull out those feathers, put them into 
a little can with kerosene in it and 
burn them, and then dust well with 
buhach. Give the hens a place well 
spaded up in the lots so they can wal- 
low in the dust every day. The hens 
"wallow" should be dug up and turned 
over at least once a week, so they 
may have a fresh place to clean 
themselves in. 

The eg<^ shell will be all right if 
you give them enough green food. If 
you cannot supply the green food get 
a sack of alfalfa meal. It will last 
a long time. Commence by giving 
the hens only one spoonful of tnis 
(for all the hens) in their mash, and 
every day add only one spoonful ^extra 
until you are feeding one-fifth of the 
mash of the alfalfa at a meal. The 
hens at first will not like it, but by 
beginning! gradually in the way I have 
described you will educate them up 
to it. 



Skim Milk — Will you kindly inform 
me whether skimi-milk is a good feed 
for young pullets or laying hens? 
Which is best, sweet, clabber or curd? 
Is there danger of feeding too much 



FEEDING IN GENERAL 



147 



curd or skim-milk? Is curd of more 
value to young- stock or to laying 
hens? I have a bunch of ten-weeks'- 
old pullets that I am feeding clabber 
and bran mixed until it makes a 
crum'bly mas'h. Is it a fattening or 
muscle or bone making ration? How 
would it do to feed to laying' stock?- 
I give skim-milk to my laying hens in 
troughs which set in the sun. Will 
that kill diseased germs or not?— L. 
E. E. 

Answer — Skim-milk is one of the 
best feeds for chickens or hens at any 
stage of their lives. It can be fed 
either sweet, clabber, or curd. By 
curd, I mean cooked. If you cook 
it, be careful not to heat it above 100 
degrees or it will become tough and 
indigiestible. There is no danger of 
feeding too much skim-milk or clab- 
ber to fowls. The crumbly mash is 
good feed, but you would succeed 
just as well 'by giving them the bran 
dry and letting them drink or eat the 
milk as they want it. It is a good 
bon.e, muscle and egg-making ration. 
I give mty fowlS' all the milk I can 
spare, pouring it into troughs and 
leaving it till they eat it. The sun 
does not seem to afifect it badly when 
it is pure milk, hut if bran were 
mixed with it, the sun might make it 
ferment and then it would disagree 
with t'hem. 



Sprouted Barley — One question in 
regard to feeding sprouted barley I 
should like to have answered. Has 
barley, sprouted, any value other than 
green, food? That is, does it loose its 
entire value as a grain ration? — L. 
E. K. 

Answer — It depends upon how long 
the sprouts have grown, and whether 
there is any grain left. If the sprouts 
are three or four inches long, there is 
very little but green food in it. If 
they have only just sprouted, and 
about yi inch long, there is still con- 
siderable grain, but I do not think it 
is as wholesome as the longer sprouts. 



Sorghum Seed — Will you tell me 
the value of sorghum seed for poul- 
try? Is it fat producing or an egg 
food and how would it do for turkeys? 
— C. B. C. 

Answer — Sorghum seed, broom 
corn seed and Egyptian corn have al- 
most the same nutritive value. They 
can be fed to both chickens and tur- 



keys with the same satisfactory re- 
sults. One year when on the farm I 
had several tons of broom corn seed 
which was left where the threshers 
worked and the fowls had free access 
to it and the green-growing wheat; 
they got through the moult early and 
layed all winter, eggs galore. I never 
saw better laying and the turkeys did 
well on it. Professor Jafifa in his 
most valuable bulletin (Farmer's 'bul- 
letin 164) on poultry feeding, gives 
us the nutritive value of broom corn 
and of sorghum seed as both the same 
— 1:8.4; of Egyptian corn 1:8-6; Sor- 
ghum seed is more fattening than 
wheat and less fattening than corn. 
If your fowls are on free range and 
have plenty of green food and animal 
food or milk, sorg'hum seed will be 
an excellent food for them. You 
should write to the Director Agricul- 
tural Experiment Station, University 
of California, Berkeley, and ask him 
to send you "Bulletin 164 on Poultry 
Feeding," then you can see just tne 
right way to 'balance your ration. 



A Tonic and Ration — I want a safe- 
ty brooder stove or a lamp to heat 
up a dust box to be used at night. I 
want to try Mr. Fox's tonic. I have 
to send off for everything except sul- 
phur, cayenne pepper, charcoal and 
salt. The others will cost me 85 cents. 
What is Fenugreek? W'hat will it 
cost? Please write me out Mr. Fox's 
tonic again. I wish you would send 
me balanced ration for Rose Comb 
Buff Leghorns. How will the follow- 
ing do as a ration and how much will 

1 have to feed to 50 hens a day? Six 
pounds wheat, 4 pounds rolled barley. 

2 pounds linseed meal, 3 pounds 
shorts, 2 pounds bran, 2 pounds corn 
meal. — A. V., Chewelah, Wash. 

Answer — You can get a safety 
brooder stove at any good poultry 
supply house. 'Dr. Fox's tonic is 10 
pounds dried blood or beef meal; 10 
pounds ground bone, or bone meal; 
substitute 5 pounds of linseed mieal 
for the fenugreek; 2 pounds sulphur; 
2 pounds powdered charcoal; Yz 
pound cayenne pepper; i/^ pound salt, 
making 30 pounds in all. The reason 
I substitute the linseed meal for the 
fenugreek is because the latter is very 
expensive here; it costsi 35 cents per 
■ pound. Your ration is a good one, 
only you should add five pounds of 
beef scraps to it. and be sure to give 
the hens plenty of green food. The 



I40 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



green food will make them lay eggs 
and will keep them healthy. Fifty 
hens would require about IS pounds 
of ration per day. 

Will Not Eat Wheat— What is the 
trouble with my hens? I feed them 
dry wheat in the evening 'but they do 
not eat it, still they have a good ap- 
petite. Will you tell mie what is: the 
trouble and what kind of food must 
be fed? — J. S., Phoenix, Ariz. 

Answer — Possibly, the wheat may 
be mouldy, or musty. Otherwise your 
hens cannot be hungry, or they would 
eat it. W'heat, oats, Kaffir corn, bar- 
ley, cracked corn, all should be scat- 
tered in deep straw or hay, hidden so 
the hens have to lexercise to earn their 
food. This is the best food, but they 
also need green food, clover, grass, 
alfalfa, pumpkins and vege- 

tables. Also animal food, such as 
meat, fresh-cut tone or beef scraps. 
They should have charcoal, grit and 
shell always 'before them. These are 
the best foods for chickens. 



For a Cold Climate — Last summer 
I raised 8i Rhode Island Reds and 
have not lost one of them, nor has 
one been sick. The climate here is 
very cold. We 'have snow until 
March. This is how I feed: Mash 
of bran and shorts in the morning; 
wheat at noon and night. I let them 
scratch in oat hay for exercise. I 
give cabbage, carrots, apples and on- 
ions raw. Am only getting two eggs 
now. 'Should I give my chicks salt 
and if so, in what way? They have 
grit, oyster s'hell, dried bone and 
dried blood twice a week. I feed 
them lots of bread; also give them 
cracklings, and ashes for them to dust 
in. Will you kindly let me know if 
I am doing right? If not, where am I 
wrong?: — Mrs. L. B. 

Answer — -As your climate is very 
cold, it would be well to mix a little 
red pepper, a teaspoonful for 12 hens, 
in their food three times a week. Po- 
tatoes boiled and mashed, mixed with 
oats, a cupful of dried blood added 
and a little pepper and salt would be 
very good for them, and will certainly 
make them lay. It has been found 
that warming grain such as corn or 
■even wheat, in the oven and giving a 
feed of that at nis-ht during the cold 
weather will help them to lay. I think 
3'ou are feeding them all right. 



Feeding White Leghorns — I am 

fe^eding my White Leghorn 'hens three 
times a day, giving them soaked bar- 
ley in the morning, a good mash at 
noon and wheat in the evening; every 
second day they get plenty of green 
food. Having gone through the star- 
vation process last summer, my eight 
hundred hens are doing well now, 
laying between 200 and 300 eggs per 
day. I have heard much about feed- 
ing hens twice a day, so I intend to 
try this method next spring when 
eggs are cheap: T will give a good 
mash in the mlorning, green food at 
noon and wheat in the evening. Do 
you think that would be as good for 
the hens as three feeds a day? How 
much mash would be necessary in 
the morning? I feed a three-gallon 
pail per hundred bens now, the mash 
consisting of four and a half pails 
cracked corn, three-fourths of a pail 
of wheat bran, two and a half pails of 
beef-scraps, shells, salt, etc. — J. R. H. 
Answer — I congratulate you on your 
success with your fowls. If you give 
as you describe, the mash in the 
morning, green food at noon and 
wheat at night, it may be called three 
meals a day, and I think will succeed 
next spring with Leghorns as well as 
the feed you are now giving them. I 
say advisedly with Leghorns, for they 
are such active, energetic birds that 
even feeding them a mash in the 
morning will not make them lazy. 
With Rocks and Wyandottes. I pre- 
fer the mash at night. I like to keep 
them scratching and exercising in the 
morning, to keep their es:s: organs ac- 
tive and vigorous. I think the same 
amount of mash you are now giving 
would be all rigiht to feed them in 
the morning, all the green feed they 
will .eat at noon, and wheat at night, 
about 12 to 15 pounds of the wheat 
per hundred fowls at night; you do 
not say how much wheat you are giv- 
ing now. If the weather gets cold, 
damp and chilly. I think it would be a 
good plan to add more cracked corn 
to your ration and also more beef 
scraps. Leghorns require, at least 
they do better, with a wider ration 
than Plymiouth Rocks: a wider ration 
is a more fattening ration. The rea- 
son for this is their great activity 
uses up more of the fat. so they re- 
quire to be fed more of it. A very 
good plan is. once in a while to weigh 
vour food, allowing' each hen about 
five ounces of solid food, that is with- 
out water, per day. « 



THE EGG QUESTION 



Egg-Bound — I have the White 
Minorcas. Have 15 hens and get from 
12 to 14 eggs per day. I have a pullet 
and an old hen that seem to droop and 
sit around all day, and sometimes stag- 
ger ; they had been laying all the time 
and their combs are still red. but they 
do not lay now. I feed them bran 
mash in the morning with alfalfa meal 
and egg-maker, and once a week chop- 
ped onions and red pepper, and at noon 
we give them green grass, and at night 
wheat, besides this they get lots of 
meat scraps from the table ; they have 
oystershell and grit before them all the 
time. They have not eaten anything 
since they felt this way, but seem to 
kind of gasp for breath, and they do not 
seem to have anything in their craws. 
Thanking you in advance for a reply, 
I remain. — Mrs. J. W. S. 

Answer : Your hens certain!}' have 
been doing very well. Minorcas very 
often get egg-bound, as their eggs are 
so large they have difficulty in laying 
them. This may be the case with 3'ours, 
and I would advise you to examine 
them. You might also give them some 
Epsom salts, half a teaspoonful in a 
tablespoonful of water. If they are egg- 
bound, inject a little olive oil and hold 
the body of the hen in a pan of warm 
water, as warm as you can bear j-our 
hands in ; this will rela.x the parts and 
enable tlie egg to pass. If it is indi- 
gestion, the Epsom salts will help tliat. 
I think your hens may not be getting 
green food enough. 



It Cured Them — ^How long can 
eggs be kept for setting and do they 
require any special treatment? I have 
a favorite hen and I want to set as 
many of her eggs as possible, but I do 
not know how long they will remain 
fertile, as I have no hen wanting to sit 
at present. Several of my fowls had a 
touch of roup and I tried a remedy 
that you gave (castor oil, camphorated 
oil, kerosene, turpentine and a few 
drops of carbolic acid) squirted up her 
nostrils. I also mixed another remedy 
that you o-ave (cayenne pepper, mus- 
tard, viengar, lard and flour) and gave 
it to the fowls, in pills, as you said. I 
Iiappened to leave it where they could 
get at it, and found that I need not give 
it in pills for they were eating it with 



relish. I have made the mixture sev- 
eral times since and they seem to be 
very fond of it. Their combs have be- 
come very red and although they are 
moulting they are laying well. Would 
you advise allowing them to eat all 
they want of it ? They are entirely well 
of the roup. — Mrs. H. A. H. 

Answer — In reply to your first ques- 
tion it is well to remember that the 
fresher the eggs you set the stronger 
will be the chicks. I always set them 
as fresh as I can get -them, and I never 
sold eggs over a week old for setting. 
However, I have kept eggs from a 
favorite hen for three weeks and had 
a very good hatch. To keep them I 
always lay the eggs on their side on 
sawdust or on grain (oats or barley) to 
keep them from rolling and I turn them 
every day. By this means the yolk does 
not adhere to one side, and I have a 
good hatch. Some advise standing them 
on the small end, but it does not suc- 
ceed as well as my way. I am glad your 
fowls have gotten over the roup. I 
would not advise you to let them eat 
their medicine because that remedy is 
a very powerful stimulant and although 
excellent for a cold, often curing it in 
one day, it will prove an irritant if 
continued too long. It is even now 
stimulating the egg organs and digest- 
ive organs greatly, as is shown by the 
comb, and I advise you to discontinue 
it, increasing the animal food ; and, as 
yours are Rhode I. Reds. I would advise 
adding some oil cake (linseed meal) to 
the food. This will help to give a fine 
gloss to the new feathers. 



Soft Shelled Eggs — Havinsr read a 
great deal of j-our advice I will ask of 
you a favor. Would you please tell 
me what can be the reason chickens lay 
unshelled eggs? They sometimes drop 
them while on the roost or our among 
the brush. Mine have been very bad 
of late ; I get as many as three or four 
a day sometimes from about thirty 
hens. I should be real thankful to find 
out what to do for them. — Mrs. L. E. L. 

Answer : Soft-shelled eggs are not 
exactly a diseased condition, but may be 
a symptom of approaching danger. It 
is usually due to a lack of shell making 
material in the food, or to inflammation 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



of the shell forming chamber of the egg 
duct, which no longer secretes calcar- 
eous matter. Over-stimulation of the 
egg organs by the use of pepper or 
stimulating egg foods will have this ef- 
fect. Worms in the intestines may also 
produce the irritation that will effect 
the oviduct, and an over-fat condition 
will increase the tendency to laying soft 
shelled eggs. This is the common cause 
of soft-shelled eggs. 

Treatment — Provided the cause is an 
over-fat condition, it can be remedied 
by giving a ration low in fat producing 
elements. Give the fowls plenty of 
shell forming material, such as crushed 
oyster shells and grit, cut bone and 
green food ; make them work for the 
grain, which should be wheat in pref- 
erence to other grains (one heaping tea- 
spoonful to a pint of drinking water) 
kept before the hens for a day twice 
a week will help remove the layers of 
fat. Feed a properly balanced ration 
and do not try to increase the egg yield 
by using stimulants that irritate the or- 
gans of reproduction. 



Poor Layers — Will you please send 
mc a copy of Prof. Jaffa's analysisi of 
foods? I also would like your advice 
in regard do my flock of hens. I have 
seventy-five hens and pullets which 
should have given me some eggs dur- 
ing t'be past few months, but I did 
not get one egg throug'h the months 
of November and December. I have 
been feedinig a mash of 'bran, sihorts, 
meal alfalfa and meat meal in the 
morning, and either wheat or cracked 
corn at night. The hens seem very 
heailthy and hearty in eating, but I 
notice when I feed tbe mash in the 
morning, the droppings look like 
molasses, bu't when I leave off the 
mash and only feed grain, the drop- 
pings are natural. 

Is meal-falfa as good as Calfalfa? 
Afy last sack of meat meal sieems 
rather hard and caked., and I am in- 
cliined to attribute the condition of 
the drop-pings to this. T am greatly 
puzzled to know why I get no esgs. 
while a neighbor who has nothing 
but common stock and who gives no 
thought or care to the flock was get- 
ting eggs right alonp-. T have thor- 
ough'bred Plymouth Rocks and a pen 
of mixed hens. — Mrs. E. B. 

Answer — Prof. Jaffa's analysis of 
the various foods for poultry in Cali- 
fornia can be had by applying to the 



director of the Agricultural Experi- 
ment Station, University of Califor- 
nia, Berkeley, Calif. It is called 
Poultry Feeding, Bulletin 164.. I do 
not keep them for distribution, but 
you can secure one 'by sending a 
postal card directed as above. If 
your hens got over the moult well, 
they should have been laying in No- 
vember and December. The reason 
'they did not lay is -either that they 
did not have green food and animal 
food sufficient, or that they had not 
enough lime to make the s-hells. The 
cause of the molasses-like droppings 
is in the meat meal. It may be bad 
from 'becoming damp, or from the 
meat -being stale; also it may come 
from 'their not having -had sufficient 
meat in the last two months. When 
first they iget the meat, they may 
over-eat ol it and that has an effect on 
their bowels. Any change must be 
gradually made. A hen sihould have 
about three ounces of grains, or their 
by-products, two ounces of green food 
and from -half ounce to an ounce of 
animal food. This, with proper 'ex- 
ercise and cleanliness, and plenty of 
clean water, will insure egg produc- 
tion. 

Calfalfa and meal-falfa are one and 
the same. They are alfalfa hay well 
dried and ground, and are excellent 
for poultry. As you have Plymouth 
Rocks, I would advise you to cut out 
the corn. It is fattening. You do not 
mention the quantities you are giving 
oif .each ingredient s-o it is very diffi- 
cult for me to iguess where it lacks. 

Over Fat Hens — I have about two 
dozen Buff Orpington hens and have 
had no eags for four months. They 
appear as 'healthy as can be. For 
some time I fed them wheat twice a 
day and the ta'ble scraps. I began 
to think I was not feeding the proper 
foods; then I got bran and an egg 
maker and also bought cabbage for 
them and still no eggs. They have 
lots of exercise and gravel and are so 
fat you cannot eat them. Please tell 
me what to do to reduce the fat. The 
past two weeks I have been giving 
them just the scraps from the table. 
Tell me. is that the proper metiiod 
to reduce fat?- — 'Sirs. A. C. S. 

Answer — You hens- are so fat that 
they cannot lay. The whole inside -of 
them is filled full of fat so the eggs 
cannot pass down the egg duct. The 
best plan would be to kill and eat, or 



THE EGG QUESTION 



151 



sell 'the fowls, because they will not 
make satisfactory layers after being 
so fat. 

However, if you wish to keep them, 
your only plan will be not to give any 
grain, or any table scraps until they 
are reduced in fat; give only green 
aMalfa or lawn clippinigs, for two 
weeks, ^Jhen commence and feed half 
an ounce of meat per hen per day and 
lawn clippings; no grain or bread, 
and in about a month 'they may begin 
to lay. 

Hens Stopped Laying — ^You answer 
so many questions that I venture to 
ask a few. I have some hens, seven 
of 'them, ten months old that were 
layinig; recently I bought a young 
rooster; the hens stopped laying after 
he came; sometimes one or two of 
them lay. I feed wheat, table-scraps 
and cut alfalfa for them every day; 
I used to let them out but cannot do 
so now. Is a good handful of wheat 
enough for a hen at each feed three 
times a day? I keep dry bran 'by 
them all the time; also crushed oys- 
ter shell.— IMrs. M. W. 

Answer — The reasons your hens 
have stopped laying is because you 
have stopped letting them out. It has 
nothing to do with the rooster. 
When they ran out the exercise kept 
the egg-making organs active. Feed 
according to the directions I have 
already given and in a few days you 
will have eggs and more of them. 



Good Laying Pullets — Could you 
tell me if a pullet, hatched from a 
hundred and fifty egg laying strain 
that begins to lay at exactly the same 
age as the pullet from a two hundred 
and twenty egg strain hen, is just as 
good a layer as the pullet from the 
220 '0gig strain hen? Would the pul- 
let from the 150 &^g strain hen be 
just as good as the 220 egg strain pul- 
let if S'he moulted as good? Why is it 
that a hundred' hens on the same 
space of ground will not do as well 
as fifty hens when their yards and 
houses are kept clean? — R. T. S. 

Answer — "You can't sometimes al- 
ways tell!" Usually the pullet that 
commences laying the earliest is the 
one that Jays the most eggs, but very 
much depends upon the care and 
feeding. If you have two pullets as 
good as you think, keep track of 
them both and let me hear from you 



at the end of a year. It would be 
quite interesting to watch them and 
hnd out which is the better layer, it 
haS' been proved beyond a doubt that 
when a small number of hens are kept 
together, they lay more eggs pro- 
rata than when large numbers are 
kept together. There are many rea- 
sons given for this but 1 do not 
know that any have been proven to 
be correct. it is, however, a well 
known fact. 



Blood Spot on Yolk — I have 150 
Brown Leighorn pu'Uets just starting 
to lay, and I supply a few customers 
with eggs and they have been com- 
plaming of finding a little blood spot 
on the yolk. 1 have plenty of nest 
room so they are not crowded. I 
have been picking 70 to 80 eggs a day. 
They have abundance of green feed. 
I feed soft feed in the morning, 
wheat at mid-day, corn at evening, so 
if you will please let me know what 
the cause of this is I will be very 
much obliiged, because my customers 
are igetting dissatisfied. — W. W. M. 

Answer — The simall blood clot you 
describe results from a slight hemor. 
rhage which has generally occurred 
in the upper two-thirds of the oviduct. 
Such hemorrhages are the result of 
great functional activity and conges- 
tion of the blood vessels. They are 
excited by any of the causes which 
lead to congestion and iniiammation 
and are to be counteracted by green 
feed and less animal food and by the 
suppression of red-pepper or any 
stimulants. Give a little Epsom salts 
in the water and add about twice the 
amount of sa.lt you are giving to tne 
mash in the morning, leaving ofif the 
red-pepper. 



Best Layers — Will you kindly tell 
me what breed of chickens you con- 
S'ider best for laying? _ I have fifty 
chickens- — mixed varieties — from one 
to two years old. I am feeding theni 
about three quarts of mixed grain 
■per day. They have layed about seven 
eggs per day for tbe past month, dur- 
ing which time they have been moult- 
ing. I also give my chickens beef- 
scraps, oyster-shells, green stuff and 
plenty of fresh water. Can you advise 
me what I should do to make them lay 
more?— Mrs. W. J. N. 

Answer : I consider the Standard 
bred chickens the best layers, as they 



MRS. BASLEVS POULTRY BOOK 



have nearly all of them been bred- 
to-lay. Your hens, you say. are 
moulting. You have to give them suf- 
ficient food to make the new feathers, 
as well as to lay eggs, and you are not 
feeding your hens enough. I have thir- 
teen hens, moulting, and they are laying 
from six to eight eggs ever}- day, and I 
feed them nearh' as much as you give to 
your fifty hens. It pays me to feed well 
because I get plenty of eggs. If you 
want your hens to lay well, keep beef 
scraps before them all the time, and 
feed them more liberally of grain, and 
all the green food, clover, alfalfa or 
vegetable, that thev will eat. 



if she is from debilitated or inbred an- 
cestors. 



Largest White Eggs — I am start- 
ing or trying to start a poultry ranch 
and would like to ask you a question 
recently asked by some one else but in a 
little different way. Which of the good 
laying breeds lay the largest white 
eggs? Mv aim is for good citv trade. — 
E. A. M.' 

Answer: The Black ^linorcas have 
the reputation of laying the largest white 
eggs. The White Leghorns are their 
close competitors. It very much de- 
pends upon the strain or family. For 
instance, one set of fowls may have been 
selected for beauty of feather and form 
and their owners may not have chosen 
those that layed the largest eggs, whilst 
some have carefully chosen the largest 
egg-layers, and bred from those, not 
caring for exhibition birds, and again a 
third party might have united these two 
qualities and have both prize winners 
and the best of layers. It depends upon 
the ability of the breeder and also upon 
his object. 

Black Minorcas do admirably in the 
climate of Southern California. I do 
not know how they would grow in a 
damper, colder climate. You would have 
to inquire of people who have had ex- 
perience in that kind of a climate. 



Egg-Bound — \\"\\\ you please tell 
me how to treat one of my hens? She 
gets on the nest every dav to lay, but 
she does not lav. She is not a young 
hen and does not eat her eggs. I go to 
the nest just as soon as she gets oflf. She 
has not laved for almost two weeks. — 
J. E. D. 

Answer : Your hen may be egg- 
bound, or she may be just commencing 
to moult, which I think is probably the 
case, especially if she has been a good 
layer. She may be a very poor layer 



Sudden Death — Lately I have had 
three liens die suddenly, and apparent- 
ly without cause ; my neighbors have 
also lost several. Perhaps 30U can en- 
lighten us and suggest a remedy. The 
hens were laying, combs red and large, 
crops full of wheat, etc., but die on the 
nest over night. I held a post mortem 
examination and could find nothing 
radically wrong. Each had well formed 
eggs and many of them. They roost 
high in the open air ; run out nights and 
mornings on alfalfa. I feed wheat 
mostly, and once every other day hot 
bran mash with a spoonful of egg 
maker. Have had over 40 dozen eggs 
without interruption since January 1st 
from twelve pullets — Minorcas — of my 
own raising. This is the first death I 
have ever had except of the little chicks. 
Pens are clean, no lice or mites. Have 
studied closely and can't "sav\-." Per- _ 
haps you can. The heart of the first one ■ 
seemed the only cause for death, as it 1 
had a large inforct, probably fatty de- 
generation ; the other was normal. — Dr. 
J. A. B. 

Answer : I think as your hens died 
on the nest, that they had some difficulty 
in layin.g. and were probably egg-bound. 
The Minorcas laying a large egg, are 
frequently subject to this trouble, more 
so in fact than the other breeds which 
lay smaller sized eggs. Straining in 
laying frequently is the cause of a blood 
vessel breaking in the head, which, of 
course, results in apoplexy. Minorcas 
rarely suflfer from an over-fat condition, 
as thev are a verv active breed. 



W?y to Get Hens to Lay — What 
months should Black Minorca and 
White Leghorn chickens be hatched in 
order to get them to lay from August 
15th on? How many little chickens are 
necessary imder fair conditions to raise 
500 hens? What kind of an our-door 
brooder is necessary to raise say 50O 
chicks at a time? Which is the cheap- 
est for a person not experienced in in- 
cubators — to buy chicks just hatched or 
to hatch them? What feed do you rec- 
ommend for little chicks? Do you think 
it possible to raise chicks on adobe soil? 
Summing up the main motive of this let- 
ter, please advise cheapest and best way 
T can get 500 hens readv for laving bv 
August 15th.— S. D. W. 

Answer — In order to get the Mediter- 
ranean class of fowls to lav bv the 15th 



THE EGG QUESTION 



153 



of August. I would advise that you 
hatch one third in February, one third in 
March and one third in April. In this 
way you will have a succession of layers 
just when your old hens are moulting. 
The eggs usuallj- hatch half pullets and 
half cockerels, so in order to have 500 
pullets, you would have to hatch at least 
1000. You would have, of course, to 
make allowance for losses in raising, so 
you had better count on hatching 1200. 
To raise 500 chicks, you should have 
ten out-door brooders. Any of the 
standard makes are good. I would ad- 
vise a person not experienced with incu- 
bators to buy chicks just hatched, if they 
are property hatched. I recommend 
dry chick feed for the little chicks. 
Adobe soil is bad for chickens, but by 
getting a load of gravel for the chicken 
vard vou can raise them. 



Eeg-Eating Hens — Would yon 
kindly tell me how to treat egg-eating 
hens? What will cure them? — Mrs. R. 
E. G. 

Answer — The best way is to cut the 
head off the offender and eat her, for 
she is certain to be fat. The informa- 
tion you ask for is as follows: ]\Ir. 
Morse (a chicken exnert) gives five 
remedies for the bad habit of egg eating. 
First ; Fit up an arrangement whereby 
the eggs as soon as layed, slide down and 
out of sight, into a sort of false bottom 
under the nest. The hens will not eat 
them because they cannot get them. 
Second : Have a lot of china eggs lying 
about promiscuous like on the floor. 



Trying to eat such eggs is likely 
to discourage egg-eating. Third : Fix 
up a hollow egg with aloes. One bite is 
enough. Consult the corner druggist as 
to how to make the mess. Fourth : Have 
grit and crushed oyster shells about in 
abundance in self-feeding boxes. Fifth : 
Do not stuff your hens full of mash in 
the morning and let them sit around all 
day, like "Father" in the song "Every- 
body Works But Father" but feed them 
grain in litter and make them hustle all 
day. This keeps them out of mischief. 
Mr. Morse's advice may be good, but I 
recommend using trap nests by which 
means you will easily discover the guilty 
hen and if she is not too valuable, the 
verdict should be decapitation. Keep 
oyster shells, grit and charcoal before 
your hens and there will be very little 
egg-eatmg for it is a vice which alwavs 
commences with weak or soft egg shells. 



Novel Nests — Do you know the 
name of the maker of a nest with an 
opening in the bottom so that the 
egars will drop throu.gh into a box 
below to prevent the hens from eat- 
ing the eggs? 

Answer — I have seen the mention 
of such nests but have never in all 
the many poultry ranches I visited 
seen such nests in use. You might 
try darkened nests. They are simply 
a curtain of burlap hung in front 
of the nest with a split up the mid- 
dle. \^^hen the hen has layed and step- 
ped off tJie nest the curtain closes be- 
hind her and she can not see the egg 
to eat it. This has been found suc- 
cessful. 



THE MOULTING SEASON 



Forcing the Moult — Since reading 
your article on forcing the moult i 
have decided to try it, and would like 
to know if it will 'be all right to feed 
alfalfa only for the three weeks, as 
that is the only green food we have. 
How long to feed it, and should it be 
before them all the time? 

We have been feeding our chickens 
cracked wheat and kaffir corn, but 
they are very bony and many of them 
have white feathers. 

These chickens are Black Minorcas 
hatched in March and we think we 
have not been feeding them right. 
Charcoal, grit and oyster-shell are 
provided and cool water fresh three 
times a day, green alfalfa every noon 
and green bone twice a week. 

Our hens are fed by the dry hop- 
per method and we give them whole 
wheat in the morning. Do they need 
anything at night? What would be 
a good way to start them with the 
grain feed after I have forced the 
moult? 

We have sixteen Black Minorca 
hens which are almost bare of feath- 
ers on their backs and breasts, which 
brought us in $7.00 worth of eggs in 
August. Do you think they are good 
layers?— Mrs. E. E. C. 

Answer — I am afraid you have not 
quite got the idea about "forcing the 
moult." The reason for putting the 
hens on short rations is to stay the 
laying and to draw the nourishment 
from the old feathers, making them 
dry and lifeless so they will easily fall 
out. When the feathers get so they 
will fall out quickly, then — then only 
— we feed them a rich food, but sup- 
posing the feathers have fallen out, 
we do not then want to starve them, 
or the feathers will not come in, or if 
they do they will not be bright and 
lustrous. When the feathers are 
forming or are coming in the hens 
should have a generous ration of 
feather forming food, corn or corn 
meal, linseed meal and animal food. 
This will hasten the forming of the 
feathers and will "force" the moult. 

Now, you say that your* hens are 
nearly bare of feathers, therefore I 
conclude they do not need to be made 
to shed their feathers, but are in the 
condition that requires plenty of 



good, rich feather making food. And 
the sooner you can get the new feath- 
ers on to them the sooner you will 
have winter eggs. You certainly 
have good layers if you had such 
good returns in August. 

About the younger chicks, if you 
feed them more animal food than you 
seem to be giving them they will de- 
velop 'better and their feathers will 
come in black, when they are mature. 
I think with you that you have not 
fed them the right ration or they 
would be large enough to be laying 
before the end of this month. 



The Proper Month — Is not the 
month of July about time to force the 
moult? I want my hens to be laying 
this winter when eggs are fifty cents 
per dozen, so I want them to moult 
now. Also do you recommend con- 
stantly keeping copperas in the drink- 
ing water? Do you think the scraps 
from the table, along- with wheat, a 
good food? — A Beginner. 

Answer— July is too early to force 
the moult; August is early enough. 
I do not recommend keeping cop- 
peras in the water, because healthy 
hens do not require it, and I am 
averse to giving drugs or stimulants 
unless for sickness. The scraps from 
the table are excellent for chickens, 
especially the meat and vegetable 
scraps. 



To Hasten Moult — I would like to 
ask your advice regarding my chick- 
ens. They have been moulting for 
the last ten weeks and of course, did 
not lay any eggs. They are Bufif Or- 
pingtons, and are very healthy. I 
feed them twice a day, bran and sour 
milk and in the evening before they 
roost, wheat and also Swiss chard 
and oyster shells. Could you please 
advise me what to give them to get 
them through the moult a little 
quicker? — V. V. 

Answer — Give your hens a little 
corn meal (about twenty per cent 
added to the bran and milk) and some 
linseed meal (about five per cent); 
also either add some beef scrap to 
the mash or give them 'beef scrap 
with the oyster shell in a box where 



THE MiQULTlNG SEASON 



they can eat as much as they want. 
They are not getting enough nitro- 
genous food to make the feathers 
come quickly. With this addition to 
the food, they will be soon through 
the moult and begin to lay. 

Stopped Laying — What can 1 do for 
my hens? They have stopped laying 
for the past week, and am at a loss 
to account for the same. They are 
a healthy stock with bright, red 
combs. Have about 30 laying hens 
and only one Buff Orpington rooster 
among the lot? Do you think that 
sufficient? I feed them bran mixed 
with cayenne pepper — a very little — 
also an egg maker. Any information 
you can give me will be greatly appre- 
ciated — N. B. 

Answer — Your fowls are evidently 
beginning to moult. I notice that a 
great many fowls are beginning early 
this year (July, 1907). I cannot ac- 
count for it unless it may be the spots 
on the sun! Help them through the 
moult and they will begin to lay 
again. 

One Orpington male should onlj* 
be mated to ten hens of his breed to 
produce fertile eggs. 



A Little Late — I am just a beginner 
and have only a few chickens. Only 
a week ago I bought my last three 
and yesterday T discovered that one 
of these had shed all of the feathers 
from ofif her neck, leaving only pin 
feathers sticking out. Under her 
wings are great bald places and her 
feathers can be pulled out easily any- 
where you touch them. Her flesh is 
dark blue and her bowels seem to be 
loose, otherwise she is apparently 
well, scratches and eats just like the 
other chickens. All over her head 



the feathers are off and there are a 
few small white sp^ts on her comb 
and one quite black one. 

My other hens are very healthy, 
get all the green clover and other 
feed they can eat, and lay well. I do 
not think the chickens got much 
green food before I bought them. 

'Db you think Blue Andalusians a 
very profitable breed compared to 
others?— Mrs. J. B. D. . 

Answer — Your hen is old, conse- 
quently is having a very late moult. 
This is being helped on by your good 
care and change of food. The blue 
color of her skin is often there when 
moulting late. The spots on her comb 
are chicken pox. Put carbolated 
vaseline on those. Keep her by her- 
self until she is featTiered out and 
quite well again. Give her plenty of 
green food and plenty of animal food. 
Andalusians are a very good fowl and 
compare well with any, but I would 
not advise you to keep more than one 
breed at a time. 



Nature's Way — Your article on 
moulting interested me very much. 
Will chickens hatched in March, April 
and May moult this fall? If so, 
should the pullets be treated sariie as 
the hens? I mean by the fasting 
method. Will they moult as early if 
they have not matured rapidly? — K. 
H A. 

Answer — Pullets hatched in ]\larch, 
.\pril and May will not moult this 
summer. They will take on some 
more feathers to help keep warm dur- 
ing the winter months, but will not 
shed feathers except a few of the 
earliest. Do not make them fast. A 
pullet should be well fed from shell 
to shelling. They will not moult early 
if they have not matured early. 



HATCHING WITH INCUBATOR AND HEN 



Poor Hatches — We have been run- 
ning our incubator since February 
and our hatches have been quite poor; 
our hens are two years old and so are 
our roosters. The hens are fed regu- 
larly, and haVe a large run with plenty 
of alfalfa; a clean airy coop. 

The chicks when hatched are 
strong and vigorous. We have some 
six weeks old and we have not lost 
one, but when they are hatching 
many die in their shells. Out of 450 
eggs TJ tested out not fertile or dead 
germs, and out of 2>7Z remaining eggs 
only 182 hatched. We are hatching 
White Leghorns. Can you tell us 
what to do, or what the matter is? 
We have been following your advice 
in many things. 

Do you think that slamming of 
doors or jarring is bad for incubators 
when hatching? — Mrs. M. F. 'De W. 

Answer — I think the fault in your 
incubator is that it has not sufficient 
ventilation. An insufficiency of oxy- 
gen will cause poor hatches s'uch as 
you describe. With the care you give 
your fowls and their being two years 
old, the fault does not lie in the par- 
ent bird or their eggs, therefore it 
certainly comes from a faulty incu- 
bator. In the future air the eggs 
three times a day; fan out the stale 
air of the incubator each time you air 
the eggs, and if you find they are dry- 
ing out too much sprinkle them, af- 
ter the first week, twice a week with 
warm water. Slamming the doors or 
jarring the incubator during incuba- 
tion is not advisable, but on the day 
of hatching it would not injure them. 

Infertility — Will you kindly tell me 
what to do to make eggs more fertile? 
I have a fine pen of Columbian Wyan- 
dottes, eight pullets mated with a 
cock two years old. They are fed on 
dry mash of bran, ground barley corn 
meal, alfalfa meal and beef scrap with 
plenty of grit, shell, charcoal and 
ground bone before them all the time, 
and are running in a corral of grass 
and clover; they have plenty of fresh 
water and the hens lay well. What 
chicks I do get are strong and 
healthy; out of fifteen eggs only two 
v/ere fertile. 

I liave another pen, four hens two 



years old mated with a cockerel one 
year old. Fed the same in every way; 
their shells are smooth but full of 
clear spots. What shall I feed to 
make shells better? — Mrs. E. H. G. 

Answer — The usual requirements 
missing from the food when eggs are 
infertile are green food and animal 
food, therefore I would advise you to 
feed more green food, more animal 
food and a great deal less barley and 
corn meal. Wyandottes are apt to 
get too fat to have good fertility un- 
less they have plenty of exercise. 
From your account, I think neither 
pen has sufficient exercise and the 
four old hens require more lime. Mix 
some fresh quick lime in water to the 
consistency of pancake batter; let it 
stand 24 hours, then pour out a cake 
of it on the ground. It will soon dry, 
and by crumbling a little of it every 
day, the hens will pick it up. Add a 
teaspoonful of baking soda to a quart 
of their drinking water and keep this 
before tliem for a week. By this 
means I think your eggshells will im- 
prove. 



Airing Eggs in Incubator — You have 
stated that you aired your eggs about 
one hour daily. Would that have a 
tendency to make your hatch come 
off late, or did you run the machine 
higher to offset the cooling? Did you 
'Start in from the first week to air that 
length of time, or was it gradual? If 
I aired them longer without chilling, 
could I get them out in time, or does 
airing them make them late? The 
chicks that came out were very wet; 
some of them stuck in the shell; the 
stuff drying down and glueing them 
in.— Mrs. N. A. R. 

Answer — After the eggs have been 
in the incubator 48 hours, I com- 
mence airing them about five minutes 
twice a day. gradually increasing the 
time two minutes each time. By the 
third week I am airing them 20 min- 
utes twice a day, or if the incubator 
is a hot-water machine, I air them 
three times a day in a room that is 
not lower than 70 to 75 degrees, be- 
cause I do not want to chill the eggs. 
If they are too much chilled or cooled 
off, they are apt to be weakly, the 



HATCHING WITH INCUBATOR AND HEN 



157 



hatch retarded and the chickens have 
difficulty in coming out of the shell, 
such as you describe. Evidently you 
have either cooled the eggs too much 
or you have run the incubator at too 
low^ a temperature. We want to give 
the eggs as much oxygen (fresh air) 
as possible without chilling them. 

Cripples — Some of my incubator 
chickens are almost cripples when 
they are taken from the incubator. 
Some have crippled, crooked and 
crumpled up toes, others have one leg 
too short, or turned out the wrong 
way, and some of them are not able 
to stand up — they hold their head 
back so far that they fall backward. 
—A. H. S. 

Answer — The cause of cripples in- 
variably is irregularity of tempera- 
ture in the incubator. Your incuba- 
tor has been too hot at some period, 
probably the last week; this causes 
cripples. Those that hold their heads 
back do so from the eggs not having 
been turned sufficiently during in- 
cubation. 

As you do not mention the name 
of the incubator, I cannot tell you 
just where the lack is. It may be 
poor oil; it may be it is run in a 
draught and it may lack ^ventilation. 

Lack Oxygen — I took 200 thrifty 
chicks from the incubator about eight 
weeks ago. They did very well for 
about two weeks when they began to 
die and today I have 50 left, and these 
look too scrubby to be worth raising. 
I have given them extra attention and 
the best feed. They get pale around 
the head, grow weak and are skin and 
bone when they die. I think they 
have consumption. The brooder is a 
tight box and no ventilation, except 
the lid has a round hole about as large 
as a teacup, and the little entrance 
window about six inches square. An 
iron pipe running through is the 
heating arrangement. Inside the box 
to fit close over the pipe, is a cap of 
wood with flannel curtains dropping 
to the floor under which the chicks 
hover. Don't you think this is too 
close a place? The outside box is 
only 6 inches deep, then they hover 
inside; this only gives 4 inches space 
for the chicks. Please tell me if you 
think t'e lid to brooder would be bet- 
ter of wire or where do you think the 
trouble is? Also tell me how granu- 
lated milk is prepared. We have late- 



ly begun feeding to everything in the 
poultry yard beef scraps, bone meal 
and linseed meal in what we think 
proper proportions once a day. Should 
chicks only eight weeks old be fed 
this ration the same as hens? What 
causes eggs to be ridgy and uneven? 
Can one feed to produce larger eggs? 
Our hens are large but lay small 
eggs.— Airs. J. B. S. 

Answer — I think that the lack of 
oxygen in your brooder is the only 
difficulty with your chicks. Still I am 
very much afraid that^ tuberculosis 
may have got in, and infected the 
brooder. If possible, move your 
chicks into a weaning house, open en- 
tirely on one side (or only closed 
with chicken wire). Make a little 
frame of gunny-sacking or out of a 
piece of blanket that they can go un- 
der. This will rest upon their backs 
to keep them warm. Give them no 
other heat. At this season of the 
year (August) eight weeks old chicks 
should have no heat whatever at 
night. I think you are keeping your 
chickens too warm, without enough 
fresh air and possibly they may have 
mites or lice. Air their sleeping 
place well; put the hover out into the 
sunshine every day. This will kill the 
germs of tuberculosis better than 
anything. 

Granulated milk is made at Bing- 
hamton, N. Y. I do not know the 
process. 

Chicks eight weeks old can have 
the beef-scraps, bone meal and lin- 
seed meal in the same proportions as 
hens. 

Uneven eggs are caused either from 
defect in the oviduct or from an in- 
sufficiency of lime or hurried laying. 

Some strains of hens lay small eggs 
and over-fat hens will lay small eggs. 
More protein added to their food will 
often increase the size of the eggs. 
By choosing the large eggs for hatch- 
ing, you can increase the size of the 
eggs in the next generation. 



Setting Hens — Can you tell me what 
is the matter with my chickens? They 
seem good and healthy until they 
start to set, then they invariably de- 
velop a severe case of diarrhoea, 
which causes them to leave their eggs 
after a few days. I have now a hen 
that wants to set. and have just re- 
ceived a setting of thoroughbred eggs, 
but today I noticed the same trouble 
as with the others, -except that she 



iss 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



seems to be a great deal worse, for 
her droppings are of a bloody na- 
ture. Can it be from too much blue- 
stone in their water or because of too 
much egg-food? I feed them a mixed 
food from the feed yard, consisting 
of corn, wheat, Kaffir corn, beef 
scraps, hone, charcoal, oyster shell, 
barley and some other grains I can- 
not classify. They get this twice a 
day together with all the table scrap 
and all the grass they can eat. They 
also have plenty of exercise. Is there 
anything I can do for this particular 
hen? Shall I try to set her or get 
some other hen for the eggs? Still 
another question, what causes a 
milky, watery substance in the whites 
of the eggs; it runs out after the eggs 
have been cooked? — G. W. Y. 

Answer — It is the bluestone in the 
water that thoroughly disagrees with 
or poisons the setting hens. Feed a 
setting hen only grains, wheat and 
corn mixed, and give her fresh water 
to drink without any medicine in it. 
You should not be giving your hens 
bluestone at this season of the year 
at all. They do not need it, and it 
will injure the fertility of the eggs 
and make the chicks hatching out 
vveakly. Do not set the hen you men- 
tioned, as in all probability she will 
leave the _ eggs. All setting hens 
should 'be in perfect health and entire- 
ly free from lice or mites. You had 
better get another hen for those eggs. 

The milkiness in the whites of your 
■eggs is an indication that they are 
perfectly fresh, that is, new layed, and 
is a great recommendation for the 
quality of your eggs. 



Chicks Dying in Shell — A large per 
cent of my chicks fully developed die 
the day they are due to hatch, even 
after pipping the shell. They seem 
to dry in the shell. — Mrs. D. D. 

Answer — Float the eggs in warm 
water. That will help the chicks to 
break through the shell better than 
anything I know of. Next time try 
sprinkling the eggs after the eighth 
day twice a week with warm water. 
I think you will find it is what is 
needed in your dry climate, and is 
likelj' to help matters. 



Answer — If your hen has been sit- 
ting for a week or ten days, she will 
"take to" the chicks as well as though 
she had hatched them herself; espe- 
cially if she is a Plymouth Rock or 
Buff Orpington. Those two breeds 
have a greater afifection for chickens 
than some of the others. Be sure 
that the hen is entirely clear of lice, 
and if she is a large hen, put from 15 
to 18 under her at night; a smaller 
hen should have from 12 to 15, not 
more if you expect the chickens to do 
well. I have trained capons to act as 
mothers; they do even better than 
the hens. 



Thermometer — Will you kindly tell 
me where I could get tested thermom- 
eter for incubator ; also where I could 
have one tested which I already have? — 
H. H. C. 

Answer — At any good drug store you 
can have your thermometer tested. If 
you want to buy a new one, go to the 
agent selling your make of incubator. 
Take the new one also to the druggist 
and have him test it thoroughly, because 
the thermometers as they are seasoned 
sometimes vary degrees, and even a new 
one cannot be trusted. 



Fooling the Hen — Is it possible to 
fool a sitting hen into caring for some 
incubator chickens when she has not 
hatched them herself. — Mrs. C. R. 



Helping Them Hatch — I find my 
White Plymouth Rock eggs are very 
slow about hatching and some I know 
would die in the shell if I had not 
dropped a few drops of lukewarm water 
on their heads, as it seemed they would 
get about half out and then the white 
skin would dry on their heads and hold 
them fast. After having two die in the 
shell I found they would free themselves 
if a few drops of warm water were 
sprinkled on them. I kept moisture in 
the pans all three days and part of the 
fourth and they are still slowly hatch- 
ing. This is the twenty-third day. Do 
you think I should keep the moisture 
pan full for a week — I mean the last 
week of incubation ? Please send me 
an idea on chick feed as I can not get 
good clean chick feed here. — Mrs. P. W. 
B. 

Answer — If you had only mentioned 
the name of the incubator you are using 
I could have better diagnosed your case. 
As it is, all I can say to you is to follow 
the rules and directions they give you 
as closely as possible. With some ma- 
chines it is very advisable to sprinkle 
the eggs twice a week after the twelfth 
day with warm water ; this seems to 



HATCHING WITH INCUBATOR AND HEN 



1 59 



make the shells more brittle and pre- 
vents the inner lining skin from tough- 
ening. I have found this better than 
keeping much moisture in the machine. 
The moisture in the machine seems to 
make the chick grow but does not make 
the shell brittle. Your Plymouth Rock 
eggs should hatch promptly on the 21st 
day. The delayed incubation indicates 
that part of the time the temperature 
has been too low. Are you sure that 
your thermometer is perfectly correct; 
have you had it tested? On the effi- 
ciency of the thermometer much de- 
pends. Many thermometers that are 
accurate at first become, through the use 
of unseasoned glass in their manufac- 
ture, absolutely incorrect after a few 
months' use. Others are really only 
within two to four degrees of being cor- 
rect, therefore be sure you have your 
thermometer tested. About the chicken 
feed, write to the Experiment Station, 
University of California, Berkeley, for 
bulletin 164 on poultry feeding. This 
gives you the lists of foods available in 
your part of the country, with the proper 
proportions for mixing them. 



Eggs for Hatching — Will you kind- 
ly tell me what is the inatter with iny 
eggs? They will not hatch well. Our 
hens are Brown Leghorns and Rhode 
Island Reds. I only got fifteen chick- 
ens in my last batch. When we broke 
the eggs after we know they will not 
hatch we find the chicks dead, but 
fully formed and just ready to hatch. 
Perhaps the shells are too hard. Will 
you please tell me what to do to 
make a softer shell? Feed according 
to your directions. 

Is it necessary to put moisture in 
the incubator? Does it hurt the eggs 
to sprinkle them with warm water if 
we think the shells are too hard? I 
will be very thankful if you will an- 
swer this, as I want to know before 
I commence to save eggs for next in- 
cubator lot. I do not keep them over 
two weeks and keep thein in a cool, 
dark place, turning thein every da}'. 
—Mrs. G. A. M. 

Answer — I wish I could tell you 
for certain what causes chickens to 
die in the shell. I have my theories 
about it, and I believe it comes from 
the eggs not being aired and cooled 
sufficiently. Cooling them and then 
warming them up again seems to 
make the shells more brittle, and this 
is the same under hens. ,If I notice 
that a hen is setting too closely T 



take her off twice a day to cool the 
eggs. With an incubator I would air 
them and turn them three times a. day, 
and either sprinkle them three times 
during the last ten days or float them 
in warm water two days before the 
hatch is due. Float them from three 
to five minutes and then put them 
back into the tray while they are wet. 
I do not believe in putting moisture 
into the incubator unless the direc- 
tions call for it. 



Incubator Chicks Dying Off — We 

have started in with the R. I. Reds, 
and have been fairly successful until 
our last hatch. Out of 65 eggs 44 
came out. Last Saturday they com- 
menced dying ofif, just fell seemingly 
from weakness and died soon after. 
We have fed them chick feed, bran, 
Indian meal, cayenne pepper, beef 
scraps, twice per day, and a little 
germazone in water occasionally. — 
C. R. H. 

Answer — From your description, I 
am afraid that the chickens have 
either been chilled or may have been 
over-heated. Either one of these 
conditions will cause the symptoms 
you describe. All you can do now is 
to give them rice boiled in milk, add- 
ing a tablespoonful of ground cinna- 
mon to each pint. Give them also 
chopped lettuce and onions. Do not 
give any cornmeal or 'beef scraps. 
When chicks have been over-heated 
cither in the incubator or brooder, it 
so weakens thejr bowels that they 
cannot digest their food and they die 
of starvation. 



Poor Hatching — I should like very- 
much if you can give me some infor- 
mation about my hatching eggs in an 
incubator. I bought a new incubator 
this spring. I have set it twice and 
had the same results both times. The 
chicks- form fully and then most of 
them die in the shell. As the same 
eggs do fine when put under a hen. I 
think it must 'be that I make some 
mistake in my treatment of the in- 
cubator. I have as nearly as possible 
followed the instructions that came 
with it. If you can .give me any as- 
sistance it wiill be appreciated very 
much.— Mrs. W. D. W. 

Answer — Your incubator is a good 
one. Its fault, for they all have some 



i6o 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Jittle fault, is that the ventilation is 
insufficient. Take the >eggs out and air 
them after the first week three times 
a day. This will counteract the lack 
of ventilation. This cooling and then 
heating up again of the eggs makes 
the shell more brittle, so that the 
chick is able to break its way out 
much more easily. Another thing I 
found in using that incubator is that 
by taking the middle eggs out of the 
row, one in each hand, and .putting 
them at the end of the row, and then 
pushing the others a;long into the 
vacant places, I .got a ten per cent 
better hatch. I ,got the idea from 
Egypt. Of course, you must be sure 
the machine stands level and that the 
thermometer is correct. 



Trouble wdth Incubators— I want to 
ask your advice about. our incubator. 
We 'bought it new in January. Out 
of 200 fertile eggs we got 75 chick-ens 
and all but nine died before they 
were 10 days old. We thought it 
was the fault of the brooder. There 
were many cripples among them, 'but 
they all died of 'bowel trouble. On 
April 30th we hatched 117 out of 150 
fertile eggs and gave the chicks to 
old hens, as we had laid our previous 
trouble to the brooder. But now the 
last are going the same way. Chicks 
hatched under hens at the same time 
are healthy and' strong. We have 
only lost one so far. We feed pre- 
pared chick feed and take the best 
of care of the chicks. The incubator 
runs perfectly, always 103, until the 
chicks begin to work out of the shell', 
when it runs up to 104 and 105. We 
have set the incubator again. It will 
match May 2<3th. We do not intend 
to give up,— W. S. R. 

Answer — The trouble is in the 
hatching. At some time or other the 
heat has .been too great. This is 
shown_ by there being cripples. I 
knowit, because I have had the same 
■experience several times myself. Once 
a hat was thrown on the machine; 
just touched the regulator; was only 
on for hailf a day. Another time a 
newspaper did the same thing. My 
big cat slept on the incubator another 



ni,ght and lost me the hatch. Each 
of the times I worked with the little 
chicks, 'giving them everything I could 
think of, but without saving them. 
Now, I think there is a possibility 
that your incubator does not stand 
level and that, therefore, one side or 
corner of the machine is a very little 
higher than the other. That side or 
corner would be hotter than the other 
side without it affecting the ther- 
mometer and would cause all or most 
of the trouble. Again, are you sure 
the thermometer is correct? Borrow 
the doctor's clinical- thermometer. 
This is what I did and put them both 
into a 'bucket containg about two 
quarts of water at 103 degrees and 
compared the two. You do not men- 
tion if the hatch came out on time. 
I feel sure that the eggs have been 
overheated, or part of them have, and 
in this way the bowels of the chick- 
ens have been weakened, the yolk of 
the egg has not been digested and 
they have dwindled and died, or 
bowel trouble has come on from the 
indigested yolk purtifying inside of 
them. I have made so many post 
mortem examinations that I feel sure 
of what I am telling you. Examine 
your incubator with a spirit level to 
see that it is Level. Test your ther- 
mometer and then try again, at the 
same time setting one or two hens, 
and as incubation proceeds examine 
the eggs, comparing them. I think 
you will find that the eggs under the 
hen dry out less nuickly than those 
in the incubator. However, if this is 
not the case, if your incubator eggs 
dry out too quickly (the air space be- 
ing larger than that under the 
hens), you will have to regulate this 
by the ventilators of the incubator. 
Keep them closed. As yours is a 
hot-air incubator there is no need of 
fanning out the stale air. The fault, 
if any, with your incubator is too 
rapid a circulation of air, thereby dry- 
ing the eggs out too soon. I think 
you had better run it half a degree 
cooler than; you have been doing. I 
say this because the crioples and 
bowel troubles denote too high a tem_ 
perature. I hope these hints may 
help you. Let me hear from you 
again if you have any more trouble. 



POULTRY HOUSES 



Mushroom Houses — Will you kind- 
ly publish a plan of a Mushroom 
house? I expect soon to have some 
choice Minorcas and wish to put them 
in the most suitable houses. — L. J. K. 

Answer — In this book is a plan of 
the mushroom house. I have used 
them and found them quite satisfac- 
tory, except for a few defects. These 
were that when they were made like 
the cut, ten inches from the ground, 
the chickens would get down in the 
morning off their perches and were in 
a draught until the attendant left 
them out; also it was difficult to reach 
the chickens to handle them at night, 
so that I had to make a door at one 
end, or side. I found the open front 
houses more satisfactorj-. These 
houses are made perfectly tight on 
three sides and the fourth side is 
either open entirely or closed partly 
cither with burlap or vvood. See pic- 
tures of these elsewhere in this book, 
which are used on many ranches here- 
abouts. 



Mushroom Houses — i. In building 
so-called mushroom chicken houses, 
shed roof style, how high should the 
lower corner of the roof be above the 
ground? 

2. How high should the lower wall 
be? 

3. How high above the lower edge 
of building should the roosting poles 
be placed? 

4. How far from the ground should 
the lower edge of the house be? 

5. How do they manage in Peta- 
luma to get good winter layers? 'D'oes 
each poultry man raise his own eggs 
for hatching? — C. W. 

Answer — i. From two to three feet. 

2. The lower wall should not be 
less than two feet in height. 

3. The roosting poles should be 
from six to twelve inches above the 
bottom of the wall, enough to keep 
the hens out of any draught. 

4. I prefer the lower edge of the 
house to be only four inches from the 
ground as that gives ample room for 
ventilation, but in this way you have 
to make a trap door for the hens to 
get in and out; to avoid this some 
people make the house to stand high- 



er from the ground, or about ten 
inches, placing the roosting poles also 
higher, or about two feet from the 
ground. With the lighter breeds such 
as Leghorns this docs all right, but 
heavier 'birds are apt to bruise their 
feet if they have to fly down from 
that height. 

5. In Petaluma the poultrymen 
nearly all raise their own chickens, 
but some buy the young chickens from 
some excellent hatcheries they have 
there, and where they get them well 
hatched at one day old. They get 
the winter layers by having early 
hatched pullets and feeding them 
ri.ght. 



More About Poultry Houses — It is 

with great pleasure I take advantage 
of your invitation to write you. I 
have been taking the Orange Judd 
Farmer for several years. It is quot- 
ed as a supposed authority. I have 
also several Standard poultry books. 
But for solid facts, and nut-shell in- 
formation, the poultry department of 
the Live Stock Tribune .gets away 
with the cake. Now the facts in chick- 
en-house building are just what I am 
after at the present time. 

Reliable and practical information 
as to the successful kind of chicken 
houses. I may say I am considered a 
first-class carpenter, so the labor will 
not hurt me. I do not wish to build 
anything in the nature of a luxury, but 
practical, up-to-date convenience, and 
a nice size to keep chickens healthy. 
One of the most important questions 
with me is ventilation without caus- 
ing disease. Have several types of 
coops in mind. First, open on one 
side and enclosed on the other three. 
Second, open all around below the 
roosts (which class I think would 
need ventilation at the ridge, and I 
am afraid w^ould create injurious 
draught from below). Third, open 
above and below roosts, and tight 
boarded all around upon line of 
roosts. 

If you could suggest something bet- 
ter than any of the above, I should be 
more than pleased to hear of it. From 
your articles I have the faith in you 
that moves hills and even mountains. 
—A. J. R. 



1 62 



M'RS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Answer — You have decidedly 
formed the right idea of ventilation; 
there must be pure air but no draughts 
in a hennery. Your ifirst plan is the 
best. You must have the open side 
turned away from the night breeze. 
There are pictures of houses of this 
description in this book. This is called 
the open-air house. 

Your second is the mushroom 
house, so called. It also is good, but 
must have no opening, or ventilation 
at the ridge, as that would cause an 
injurious draught. I have tried both 
of these plans, and find them both 
admirable. In fact, fowls of healthy 
parentage will never be sick in houses 
of either plan if they have sufficient 
green food and pure water. The air 
in these houses passes over the drop- 
pings and carries ofif the efifluvia, so 
the house never smells close, and in 
the mushroom house, the heat from 
the bodies of the fowls is conserved 
in the top of the house and they do 
not feel the chill of the night air, 
which draws upon their vitality, con- 
sequently upon the egg production. 
These are the most sanitary arrange- 
ments for henneries in this climate I 
have tried. The third plan you men- 
tion, would not be satisfactory. It 
would be too draughty. 

Housing Chicks — Do you think it 
advisable and safe to have four 
months old chicks in a house facing 
towards the north with boards for 
half and burlap for the other half of 
the front? If not, would canvas be 
better? Is canvas waterproof enough 
for a chicken house? — C. W. S. 

Answer — I think it quite safe to put 
four months old c'lrcks in a house 
facing the north such as you describe. 
Give the chicks plenty of fresh air 
but no draughts. A crack or a knot 
hole will give colds, bronchitis and 
roup. 'Canvas is water-proof enough 
for a chicken house and makes a 
good chicken house. You can easily 
find if it leaks, and mend the hole, or 
you can even paint it with oil. 

Whitewash — Is there a good cheap 
way to make whitewash that will stay 
inside and out of poultry houses and 
stand rain and sun without scaling 
off so soon? — "B." 

Answer — Here is a recipe for 
whitewash which is unrivaled. It 
will stand the wear and tear of the 



elements for a long time. Anyone 
by adopting the following formula, 
cannot help attaining success: 

Into a tight box or barrel, put five 
or six gallons of hot water in which 
has been dissolved four or five pounds 
of coarse ground salt. Into this put 
a pail full of the best lime obtainable. 
The large lumps should be broken 
into quite small pieces. Immediately 
cover the barrel and cover with a 
heavy weight, in order to keep it in 
place when the lime is slaking, for 
the uplifting power of the boiling 
mass will be surprisingly great. Af- 
ter a few moments uncover and stir 
the mixture to the bottom with a long 
stick, then recover and keep closed 
for a day or two. When fully slaked 
the lime should be of the consistency 
of thick cream. When applied to hen 
houses or a fence, it should be thinned 
with water to the consistency of 
common paint. 

If too much water is used in slak- 
ing, the lime will be drowned and as 
a result, the wash will be thin and 
watery. If not enough water is used, 
the lime will "burn" and granulate. 
If properly slaked, the mass will be 
smooth and free from lumps. 

When applying the whitewash, dip 
nut a sufficient quantity into a pail, 
then stir in a handful • of cement. 
This will cause the wash to firmly 
adhere to the surface to which it is 
applied. It will be a dazzling white- 
ness and will "lay on" like paint. 

An excellent plan when whitewash 
is to be used about the hen house, 
chicken coops, etc., is to put in a lib- 
eral quantity of crude carbolic acid. 

This may be a lengthy description 
of the simple process of making 
whitewash, but anyone will find the 
recipe first-class. The old-time meth- 
od of slaking lime in cold water and 
applying the weak solution is very 
unsatisfactory. 

Burglar Alarm — I refer to the men- 
tion made by you of an electric bur- 
glar alarm to protect poultry houses, 
and would venture to inquire whether 
such an alarm may be installed by 
one not a professional electrician. 
Upon what principal is it based, and 
what are the materials needed? — • 
H. M. 

Answer — I nut in the burglar 
alarm you speak of myself. I am not 
a professional electrician, but I went 
to the electrical supply house, bought 



POULTRY HOUSES 



163 



from them the ordinary alarm fix- 
tures which are used at the door and 
windows of residences; they ex- 
plained to me how to set them, and 
I did it b}' their directions. I did not 
find it difficult. None of the doors or 
windows in my hennery could be 
opened four inches without the alarm 
gong at the head of my bed, ring- 
ing. I should think you would have 
to understand a little about it to put 
them in. 



Moving Chicken Houses — I have an 
orchard and am thinking of going 
there and confining my hens in a 
house large enough for twenty-five. 
I propose to attach to the house a 
closed covered run twelve or fifteen 
feet by five. This house and run I 
could move say twenty feet every 
week. At that rate of movement it 
will take about six months going 
from one end to the other. The shift- 
ing of position would give new soil to 
scratch on each week. It would be 
necessary to confine the fowls as I 
have outlined for six or seven months 



to keep them away from the grape 
vines planted in the place. There 
would be some shade from young- 
trees. When the grapes were off the 
vines the fowls could be turned loose, 
that would be during the winter 
months. Is the plan practical? How 
long do you think it might be worked 
until one would have to quit because 
of disease and loss of vitality? — H. 
S. T. 

Answer — Your plan is quite feasible 
and there is no reason for it not last- 
ing for years, but I would advise you 
to move the house and yard twice a 
week as the yard is small for the 
twenty-five fowls. You will have to 
keep the fowls healthy by making 
them exercise and by not feeding any 
mashes but plenty of green food. 
jNIoving the house and run frequently 
will spread the chicken droppings 
over the place and in a few years 
make your orchard very fertile. By 
keeping the hens vigorous, clean, out 
of draughts, there is no need for roup 
or any colds in your part of Cali- 
fornia. 



Management of Poultry — Kindly let 
me know where I can get full in- 
formation and feeding, etc., of poul- 
try; in fact, good ideas of how to run 
a chicken ranch as I intended shortly 
to make my home in Idaho and resort 
to this occupation. — D. B., New York. 

Answer — You had better take the 
Live Stock Tribune, published in Los 
Angeles, as it is considered the best 
poultry magazine west of the Rockies 
and deals with the conditions of the 
Pacific Coast and adjacent States, so 
that you would find this western paper 
of more use to you than any eastern 
paper. The price is only 50 cents a year. 



Willing to Learn — T am thinking 
of starting in the poultry business and 
would like to ask a few questions. Are 
incubators a success ? Why is it neces- 
sary to test the eggs ? Is it best to put 
young chickens in a brooder or to give 
them to a hen? Why could one not 
put eggs in the incubator as they are 



layed, say two or three a day and take 
the chickens out as they hatch? — F.L. 

Answer — Incubators are a success 
if you get a good standard make. 
Find out what your neighbors are 
using successfully. It is necessary 
to test the eggs to take out the in- 
fertile ones and use them for eating 
or cooking so as not to waste them, 
also the infertile egg not having life 
in it is cold and chills the neighbor 
egg which has life in it. 

If you use an incubator, it is neces- 
sary to have a brooder, as you will 
hatch too many chickens to go under 
a hen. 

It is not best to put eggs into the 
incubator as they are laj^ed, because 
for the last two days of incubation the 
incubator should remain closed, also 
for the first two days — and between 
those periods the eggs have to be 
moved, turned, and taken out of the 
incubator and cooled, consequently it 
is best to save the eggs until you 
have enough either to put under the 
hon or fill the incubator. 



YARD ROOM 



How Many Chickens to Keep on a 
City Lot — Will you kindly tell me 
how many chickens can be kept on a 
city lot seventy-five 'by a hundred 
and eighty feet? Do you think chick- 
ens will lay well during the rainy sea- 
son in Seattle, Wash., if they are 
properly fed and housed? How big 
a house do we need for fifty chickens? 

Last September we bought thirty 
Plymouth Rock hens and thirty pul- 
lets. We got from id to i6 eggs from 
the hens per day, until about the 
middle of December when they be- 
gan to fall off. We are still getting 
that amount, but half of them are 
from the pullets. Do you think they 
are doing as well as we could expect? 
—Mrs. L. E. S. 

Answer — In your climate it would 
very much depend upon the shelter 
from the rain that you can give the 
chickens. Fifty chickens should be 
divided into two pens with two 
houses. Each house not less than ten 
by twelve feet in size. I would ad- 
vise a good scratching pen to be made 
either adjoining the house and cov- 
ered with a roof, or else make the 
scratching pen to extend underneath 
the dropping boards. You might 
keep several hundred hens upon land 
75x180 feet if you have ample house 
room for them so they would be well 
sheltered from the rain. Hens that 
are wet every day will not lay well. 
Your fowls are doing well consider- 
ing the wet weather you are having. 



How Many on Two Acres — I have 
two acres of land, of which I will have 
a hundred feet by one hundred feet 
for an alfalfa patch, the rest for 
chickens to run around and have the 
patch for them to feed on for an hour 
or so before going to roost. Kindly 
let me know how many chickens I 
can raise on the two acres at the 
most.— M. J. P. 



Answer — I think you can keep a 
thousand chickens on your two acres. 
You must be careful not to have more 
than fifty to roost in one house. It 
is the crowded condition of houses at 
night that brings trouble and disease. 
Be sure to give them shade during 
the day and plenty of good fresh 
water, besides, of course, the bal- 
anced ration. Allow them two hours 
a day on the alfalfa patch. 



Five Acres — Will you kindly tell me 
how many White Leghorns I can suc- 
cessfully raise on five acres of land? 
I want to grow alfalfa and some vege- 
tables for feed. 

Will you also tell me if I can hatch 
turkeys in an incubator? — J. W. L. 

Answer — You can raise a large 
number of Leghorns on five acres of 
land. I know one party that has 
3,000 Leghorns on three acres, but 
it entirely depends upon knowing how 
to do and doing it right. Better be- 
gin with a small number and when 
you succeed with those, increase 
your flock. 

Turkeys can be hatched in an in- 
cubator and raised in a brooder, but 
must be kept entirely separate from 
chickens, or they will die. 



Yard Room — I want to raise about 
60 pullets for next winter. I have 
about a hundred chicks hatched out. 
All the yard room I can spare is on a 
town lot about 50x75 feet. Do you 
think this would be enough room for 
them?— Mrs. J. F. Y. 

Answer — It all depends upon the 
care you give them; if you can sup- 
ply them with shade, plenty of green 
food, clean water and a good scratch- 
ing place and the proper food, it will 
be plenty large enough. Be *sure to 
keep them clean and free from mites 
and lice. 



MATING AND BREEDING 



Age for Mating — I wish to ask if a 
cockerel should be mated after he at- 
tains a year in age or can he just as 
well stay till a year and a half or two 
years old before being- mated? 

Also I wish to know if it is quite 
as advantageous to mate a rooster 
with a pullet of his own clutch, sup- 
posing the pullet and rooster are both 
a year and a half old. I would like to 
do that if you think it advisable. — 
M. S. H. 

•Answer — The earliest age at which 
a cockerel may be mated should be 
about ten months, not earlier if you 
want large, vigorous chickens. I con- 
sider the best age for getting sturdy 
chicks is for both parents to be about 
two year of age. You can keep a 
male bird as long as you wish with- 
out mating him but he should be en- 
tirely out of sight and out of hearing 
of the hens, otherwise he will fret to 
get to them. I have known several 
to drop down dead from getting too 
much excited at seeing other young 
males in the pems with the hens. 

From a year and a half to three 
years of age is undoubtedly the best 
age at which to mate the fowls but 
you can have very good results with 
older fowls. In your place I would 
certainly mate the year and a half 
male with the year and a half hen and 
expect good results, for they should 
both be in their prime. 

Mating Brother and Sister — Is there 
any objection to mating a rooster 
with hens of his own clutch if they 
are all old enough, say a year and a 
half or two years old? — Mrs. G. S. H. 

Answer — ^It is considered best not 
to mate brother and sister together, 
yet this is always done in making any 
new breed, and as yours comes from a 
three hundred e^pi; a year hen, I would 
advise you to do so 

Breeding — I have a nice R. I. R. 
cockerel. He is good shape and color 
but he is not up to standard weight. 
If I breed from him will he produce 
chicks larger than himself if they 
are well taken care of? Is there any 
chance of getting perfect specimen 
from fowls under weight? I bought 
some very fine looking hens, but their 



breasts are uneven. I also got eggs 
from the same stock and the pullets 
have crooked breasts. Kindly tell me 
if that trouble will be handed down if 
I breed from them — Mrs. C. R. 

Answer — As a rule, the chicks take 
their size from the mother. If your 
R. I. R. hens 'have a good size the 
chickens will be larger than the 
cockerel, if you feed them for large 
frame. If the hens are under weight 
and size, you may have difficulty in 
increasing the size of the offspring. 
Some people think that crooked 
breastbones come from chickens 
roosting on a narrow perch when 
they are young; however I think it is 
generally conceded that crooked 
breast-bones are often hereditary. 
You will know if your chickens have 
roosted at too early an age. If not, it 
is hereditary and you had better 
change the strain. 



Crossing Leghorns — Please let me 
know if it is profitable or a good 
plan to cross Brown Leghorn hens 
with a White Leghorn rooster. What 
kind of looking chicks are produced 
hy such crossing? — F. V. 

Answer — I do not think it would 
be a good plan to cross the Brovv^n 
and White Leghorns. The chicks 
would 'be unevenly marked, some 
white, some brown, and a few mixed, 
and nothing would be gained by 
crossing. 



Mating Parent and Offspring — I 

have a choice Barred Rock hen that 
I have mated with a vigorous young 
cockerel. I expect next year to mate 
her with one of her sons and the pul- 
lets with their father. B^eyond this 
I am somewhat muddled as to the 
pfoper matings in order to establish 
a flock of "line-bred" fowls. Kindly 
explain the proper steps to take. — 
G. B. 

Answer — It would entirely depend 
upon the results of your first and sec- 
ond mattings, the results of which 
nobody could possibly foretell, es- 
pecially not knowing the parent birds. 
You would probably have to establish 
a double mating, keeping one pen for 
cockerel breeding and the other for 



i66 



M'RS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



pullet. All you can do is to wait and 
see the results and then get some one 
who is a good judge to look at your 
fowls an.d tell you which colors 
(whether dark or light) you should 
mate together, also which shapes, 
whether blocky or rangy. 



how you make your mash, whether 
there is any animal food in it or not. 



Increasing Size of Eggs — I have a 
number of chicks, White Leghorns 
and Black Minorcas, which are penned 
up in a certain number in each corral, 
which is quite large. 

I feed warm mash in the morning, 
at noon mixed grain, wheat, Kaffir 
corn, cracked corn, hulled oats and 
rolled barley. Afternoon I give all 
the cut up green clover and lettuce 
they can eat; before going to roost 
I give them all the mixed grain, the 
same as at noon, that they can eat. 
The chickens were hatched last March 
and in the early summer. 

I would like to know if I am giving 
them too much clover and lettuce or 
too much grain, or too much of the 
combined food. I have very little 
sickness with them and get quite a 
quantity of eggs, only there are quite 
a number of small eggs layed. Will 
you kindly let me know if there is 
any known way of increasing the size 
of the eggs? The ones that are lay- 
ing the small eggs were hatched last 
.March.— Mrs. T. H. H. 

Answer — Leghorns and Minorcas 
can stand more grain than Asiatics 
and American breeds. You cannot 
over-feed with green food at this sea- 
son of the year. You do not mention 
the animal food. Each hen should 
have about a half-ounce of animal 
food per day; otherwise your feeding 
appears good. The only way of in- 
creasing the size of the eggs is by 
selecting as breeders hens that lay 
large eggs and only setting eggs from 
those fowls. Leghorn pullets lay a 
small egg unless they are of the 
"bred-to-lay" strains. The second 
year they lay larger eggs. A liberal 
feeding of animal food will increase 
the size of the eggs. You do not say 



Buff Leghorns or Buff Orpingtons — 

My husband and I have read your 
articles with a great deal of interest 
for a long time. We wish to start otir 
chicken raising on a scientific plan 
and are preparing to get either Buflf 
Leghorns or Buff Orpingtons. Are 
the Orpingtons a good eating fowl as 
well as good layers? What do you 
think of a pure cross between the two 
Ijreeds, using the Leghorn pullets and 
Orpington cockerels? Of course I 
mean to keep the cross alw^ays pure. 

Where can we go to get thorough- 
bred fowls of either variety? Also 
please advise us of several good poul- 
try farms nearby Los Angeles which 
Ave can visit. We wisTi to profit by 
other peoples' experience and save 
ourselves as much discouragement as 
we can. Are these ranches open to 
visitors on certain days? 

Answer— Bufif Orpingtons are ex- 
cellent layers and a delicious table 
fowl. They should commence to lay 
at about five months of age and are 
good winter layers. They lay a brown 
egg and are surely a beautiful bird. 
T do not think a cross between the 
Buff Orpingtons and Buff Leghorns 
at all advisable. There is nothing 
to be gained by it; nothing whatever. 
In making a cross, the usual way is 
to take a light weight male for heavy 
weight females. This is in order to 
have large chickens, as the mother 
very much controls the shape and size 
of the offspring. How would you 
propose to keep the cross pure? You 
can get thoroughbred fowls of any 
variety from advertisers in the Live 
Stock Tribune. Most of the ranches 
which advertise fowls tor sale are glad 
to show them to visitors, and*a good 
plan would he to attend the poultry 
shows; there you will see the best 
fowls of many different breeds; can 
there choose those you like best, be- 
come acquainted with their owners 
and make arrangements to visit their 
ranches. 



QUESTIONS OF BEGINNERS 



Just Starting In — 1 am just starting 
in the chicken business and as I know 
very little about it, thought I would 
ask you a few questions. 

1. Is it good to let several breeds 
run together if you do not set the 
eggs, or should each breed be confined 
in separate pens? 

2. Is it necessary to feed meat and 
green food in the summer, or will 
they get bugs and grass enough ? 

3. How can I ventilate a hen house 
and not have a draught? Is it good 
to have • the windows open day and 
night in warm weather? I have built 
two chicken houses with a shed bet- 
tween them and lined the houses with 
tar paper, but each night the chickens 
all go into one house, and I have to 
carry them into the other one. How 
can I make them go into both houses? 

4. I have an incubator that holds 
240 eggs, and would like to know 
how to turn the eggs quickly. It 
takes me about ten minutes, and I 
think that is longer than the eggs 
should be out, besides, the way I 
turn them (catch each egg between 
finger and thumb and turn it over) 
some of the eggs get jarred some- 
times. 

5. How many chickens should be 
in one inclosure if you want eggs? 
Should the young roosters be kept 
separate from the pullets? If so, at 
what age should they be separated? 

6. Is it necessary to feed both 
ground bone and oyster shells at the 
same time? 

7. 'Bo oats make good feed? If 
so, should they be hulled? — F. A. F. 

Answer — i. It is not good to let 
different classes of fowls run to- 
gether. The Leghorns (Mediter- 
ranean Class) need a more fattenaing 
food than the Plymouth Rocks. 
What would make a Leghorn lay 
well would prevent a Plymouth Rock 
laying, as it would make her too fat. 

2. It is necessary to feed meat and 
green food if hens are confined in 
runs or j'-ards, and if the grass dries 
up, turns into hay. or becomes tough 
in the summer time. You must be 
the judge yourself about this matter. 

3. You can best ventilate a house 
by having one side entirely open or 
closed only in winter or rainv weath- 



er by a burlap curtain. If you have 
windows, take- the sashes out and re- 
place them with burlap or leave the 
windows open day and night in warm 
weather. 

When the chickens are going to 
roost of an evening, stand there with 
a broom and gently "shoo" half of 
them into one house and the other 
half into the other. This will teach 
them the way much better than to 
carry them. 

4- If you will tell me the name of 
your incubator (each make has a dif- 
ferene shaped egg tray) I could tell 
you how to turn the eggs. Ten min- 
uets is not too long to keep the eggs 
out. 

5. It depends upon the size of the 
enclosure. Twenty-five is about the 
best number to keep in a colony 
house. Separate the young roosters 
from the pullets as soon as you can 
detect the sex. 

6. Feed both ground bone and 
oyster shall. It is necessary. 

7. Oats make excellent food for 
hens, increasing the fertility of the 
eggs and making the chicks larger 
and stronger. Hulled oats are the 
best. 



Wants to Start Right— We have lo- 
cated in Hood River, Oregon. The 
rainy season commences about the 
first of December and lasts until about 
the first of March. It sometimes 
reaches zero, but only for a day or 
two, I am told. I wish to raise some 
chickens for the money there is in 
them. I just want to start with a few 
and see what success I have before 
I go in on a large scale. I think I 
would like the Buckeve Red or the 
Plymouth Rock. Which would be 
better adapted to this climate? I want 
the best winter layers. Could you tell 
me how to make and fasten droop- 
ing boards under the perches, as I 
see you advocate them in lice killing^ 
—Mrs. C. W. M. 

Answer — The Buckeye Reds and 
the Plymouth Rocks are both very 
good breeds. The Plymouth Rocks 
weigh about a pound more than the 
Buckeyes. They are both equally 
adapted to your climate and are con- 
sidered good layers. Drooping boards 



1 68 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



are only a small platform nailed up 
underneath the perches about six 
inches below them for the droopings 
to fall on. They can be either slant- 
inor or level. 



Best Fowls for a Greenhorn — What 
is the best breed for a greenhorn to 
commence the poultry business with? 
— W. H. Y. 

Answer — Your question is short and 
direct, but a difficult one to answer 
briefly. If you had asked me which 1 
considered the best all-purpose fowl, 
I should have answered "one of the 
American breeds." If you ask me 
which do the best with the handling 
of a greenhorn I must say it all de- 
pends upon the greenhorn. If you 
want good layers for the San Fran- 
cisco market, I should advise you to 
.get a large strain of one of the Medi- 
terranean varieties, for they lay white 
eggs. As a rule the man who is un- 
acquainted with poultry will do fully 
as well with that class. It is next 
to an impossibility to get them so fat 
that they will not lay. In fact they 
will lay on almost any kind of feed- 
ing, provided they are comfortably 
and cleanly housed and have some 
kind of litter to scratch in. 



What to Do and How — As I am 

about tn go out on a ranch where I 
will find 200 White Leghorns awaiting 
me I would like to have a few sug- 
gestions from you. 

1. Is oyster shell just as good as 
grit? 

2. What proportion and what kind 
of feed do you suggest for hens this 
time of year? 

3. There are no pullets. Would 
you advise the forced moult for about 
half of the hens to prepare them for 
early winter layers? 

4. Will hens (laying) need fresh 
meat scraps or bone if they have two 
acres of green alfalfa to run on or will 
the insects provide sufficient meat 
food? 

5. Is dried meat and bone as good 
as fresh ground bone and meat? 

6. As I have no fryers or table 
fowl of any size would you advise 
setting some hens now so as to have 
fowls to eat for the winter? 

7. How many roosters will I need 
for 200 hens? I will have ten with 
them. Js that all that is necessary 



until I want fertile eggs? — ]\lrs. E. R. 
L. 

Answer^-Osyter shell is not the 
same as grit and will not take its 
place. Hens require both. The oyster 
shell is to supply the lime for the egg 
shell and the grit or sharp gravel to 
supply the place of teeth to grind the 
food. 

2. Keep to the feed they are accus- 
tomed to have until the moult. 

3. I would strongly advise the 
forced moult for half the hens to pre- 
pare them for winter layers. 

4. Hens will not find enough ani- 
mal food in our climate on your range. 
You will have to give them either 
meat-meal or dried beef scraps to sup- 
plement the few insects they will find. 
Or else give them the dry granulated 
milk. 

5. This is still an unsettled ques- 
tion. The fresh meat scraps are bet- 
ter than dried if you can get them 
fresh and without any preservative, 
fcut if they are at all stale, or if any 
preservative has been used they are 
almost poisonous and should not be 
used. 

6. Yes! I certainly would set a 
few hens and would raise some chick- 
ens with hens for winter eating. 

7. You do not need any male birds 
at all with hens unless you want 
fertile eggs. Infertile eggs are con- 
sidered better and keep much better 
than fertilized eggs. Therefore, you 
need not keep any male birds at all 
till you want to hatch the eggs. Then 
pen up some of your best layers with 
a good vigorous cockerel from an ex- 
tra fine egg-laying strain and you will 
have fine layers for another year. 

A Few Points — Will you be kind 
enough to answer a few questions for 
me concerning my chickens? 

First — What causes a chicken's 
comb to turn black? 

Second — One of my Wyandottes 
drooped a few days, died and upon 
dissecting her found she was very fat; 
had a fully formed eg:s;: in her, which 
she evidently was unable to pass. 
What is the trouble? 

Third — Do chickens ever get too 
fat to lay? 

Fourth — 'Leghorn pullets hatched 
last April have not begun to lay yet. 
Can you tell me why? I feed whole 
barley, wheat, bran mash, and chick- 
ens have two acres of alfalfa and clo- 
ver to run on; also table scraps, char- 



QUESTIONS OF BEGIXXERS 



169 



coal, ground bone and Kaffir corn. 
The most of mj- chickens are Brown 
Leghorns. 

Fifth — How often should chickens 
be fed green bone? — A New Hand. 

Answer — First — A chicken's comb 
turning black indicates liver trouble 
or indigestion, usually caused by lack 
of green food, lack of exercise and 
too much ftarch food, or it maj- be 
poison. 

Second — Your Wyandotte was egg- 
bound. By injectinsr a little olive oil 
and holding the lower part of her 
body in warm water for 20 minutes 
you might have saved her. 

Third — Chickens frequently get too 
fat to lay. 

Fourth — Your Leghorn pullets 
should all be laying by the last of 
November. An insufficienc}- of egg- 
making material in their food, a lack 
of shell or animal food and green food 
will keep them from laying. 

Fifth — 'Chickens should be fed 
green bone every other day. If you 
cannot get that fresh, the dried blood 
and bone make a very good substi- 
tute. 



Best Breeds, Etc. — I. have come 
from the East and am starting in 
chickens and would like to know 
which are the three best broilers, 
heavy chickens, and good layers. 

When is the best time to set chick- 
ens? How is the best way to pro- 
tect your chicks from cats? Is the 
scratch food you buy already mixed 
as good as you can make? Is there 
any way to cure a hen that has an 
egg broken inside her? — H. F. A. 

Answer — In this beautiful climate 
all breeds of chickens do well so you 
had better choose those that you like 
best. It is like asking me which flow- 
ers grow best and which shall I plant? 
All do well here if j-ou take the proper 
care of them. You can set a hen ev- 
ery month in the year here. Marcn 
is one of the best months. IMake a 
cat-proof coop to protect your chickj 
from cats, or keep a good fox terrier. 
The scratch food that you speak of is 
excellent. I use it because it saves 
me the trouble of mixing. x\n expert 
might save a hen with an egg broken 
inside her, but as a' novice you had 
better cut her head off. 



Beginner's Questions — I have just 
bought a few chickens from a woman 
who is going away. S'he told me not 
to feed them any bran. She had done 
so and they did not do well. I asked 
the flour and feed man about it and 
he said "'bran was the best and rolled 
barley was the poorest feed." I 
would like to know what you advise. 
These two statements are flat con- 
tradictions. What is the best thing 
to kill mites or lice? One man told 
me to use lard for killing lice. He 
said it made the hens look pretty 
tough, yet it did not hurt them. I 
have thirty hens, all young. and 
some should be laying now. I feed 
my chickens greens in the morning. 
I have a grape vine and they are very 
fond of the leaves; I have not given 
them anj- mash; a little grain at 
night. You may have been asked 
these questions many hundreds of 
times, yet everyone that starts has tc 
begin at the A B C— H. C. L. 

Answer — Bran is a very health}^ 
food for chickens, and rolled barley 
is a richer or more fattening food 
than bran; both are good for fowls. 
The nutritive value of bran is 1,4 and 
of barley 1.6. The best thing to kill 
mites is to spray the house with 
kerosene emulsion. Burning sulphur 
candles is excellent if you can stop 
up all the cracks and air-holes of 
every description, then either spray 
the walls with water or wet the floor 
thoroughly and light the candles and 
escape out o.f the house shutting the 
door tightly behind you. Keep the 
house shut up for 12 hours. If the 
fumes of the sulphur escape from the 
house through the cracks, it is of but 
little value, therefore I prefer the 
spraying. For killing body lice, dust- 
ing the hens with a good insecticide 
is the best way. Greasing them with 
kerosene and lard was grandmother's 
method, and while it frequently kills the 
lice, it will make young chickens quite 
sick. A hen to do well, needs about six 
ounces of food per day. Of this one- 
third should be green food, one-half 
grain and one-sixth meat or animal 
food. For your thirty hens they should 
have twice a day, about two quarts of 
grain, as much green food as they can 
eat and a pound of meat or animal food. 
This is just an outline of what they 
should have to make them lay and keep 
them in good condition. 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



From Beginnng to End — I have been 
wanting to write you for several 
months, but hated to do so as I feared 
my letter would be too long. I would 
like to ask about my little chicks of 
last summer, so I will know what to 
do for them another year. I had very 
good hatches, but only raised about 
one-fourth of what I hatched. They 
all seemed hearty and strong when 
they hatched except a few which were 
crippled. One leg drew up like it 
would not bend at the knee and a few- 
seemed to have something the matter 
with the cords of their neck; their 
heads drew back under them and they 
peeped pitifully. The rest grew fine 
until about two weeks old and some 
four or five weeks, when I thought 
the danger was over. They seemed 
to get sour crops and gas. I fed them 
a special chick food and was very 
careful to give them clean fresh wa- 
ter. They had no soft feed at all; 
plenty of grit. I cut up tender grass 
and clover and fed them when the 
weather did not permit them to be 
running out. I tried giving them a 
little soda and the little things would 
vomit, and I think every one that got 
that way died. What is best to do? 
One or two old hens seemed to be 
afifected the same way, and I gavt 
them a little soda water, then emptied 
their crops and gave a little more 
soda and they got all right, but the 
little ones were too weak. In April 
and May something seemed wrong 
with their digestive system, and they 
became very constipated. They were 
fed the same food, too. What do 
you think caused it and could you 
give me a remedy? They nearly all 
sickened and died. I am going to trv 
again, for I love my chicks and hate 
to give them up, 'but am not much of 
a financial success with them, espe- 
cially since feed is high. From my 
200 hens I get only about two dozen 
eggs per day and feed about three 
gallons of wheat in the morning, then 
I mix a soft feed of iYj parts bran, i 
middlings, i alfalfa meal, 3-4 beef- 
scraps dried, a little salt and cayenne 
pepper. I feed it either dry or just 
dampened a little; I alternate it with 
egg food and then at night I feed 
them wheat again, three gallons or 



more. They always have some of the 
soft feed left at night. What is wrong 
with my feeding? The droopings 
looked like boiling molasses. We 
have a few Plymouth Rocks and 
White Minorcas, besides mixed breeds. 
What can I do to get better results? 
They all look nice and healthy. 

I will give you the price of feeds: 
Wheat, $2 per 100; barley, $1.50 per 
sack (80 lbs.); bran, 90 cents per sack; 
middlings, $1.60 per sack; beefscraps, 
$4 per cwt.; blood meal, $4-50 cwt.; 
cracked corn, $2.20 cwt. Please tell 
me how I could best feed at these 
prices. I want to learn all I can. I 
have read your letters for so long 
that you seem almost like a friend. 
Thanking you in advance for the help 
T feel sure I will get, I am. — Mrs. L. 
D. E. 

Answer — I have condensed your let- 
ter somewhat, but am glad it was 
long, as it enables me to judge better 
what you need. About the _ little 
chicks: Those that had the crippled 
legs were overheated in the incubator. 
Those whose head drew back was 
caused from the eggs not being pro- 
perly turned during incubation, and 
the little ones that died of sour crops, 
as you call it, died from indigestion. 
When overheated, or not turned suffi- 
ciently, or have not had oxygen 
enough, the result is a weakened liver, 
and the yolk of the &g^, which is 
drawn up into the bowel cavity the 
last days of the chick's life in the shell, 
cannot be digested. This yolk lies in 
the bowel cavity, gets hardened al- 
most like rubber, or like a hard boiled 
e^sr, and stays there till it putrifies 
and poisons the chick. Diarrhoea, of 
"stuck-up-behind" is often one of the 
symptoms. The chicks, when first 
hatched, appear vigorous and lively, 
but gradually become sleepy and 
droopy and appear to grow smaller; 
are chilly or feverish and huddle to- 
gether and finally die. This results 
from lack of oxygen and ventilation 
in the incubator. I would strongly 
advise you to change to another chick 
food. I think in your part of the 
countrv, large crops of oats are raised. 
I would advise you to get the hulled 
oats, or rolled breakfast oats, and 
cracked corn; mix and give instead of 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



the chick food, keeping a box of beef- 
scrap (fine) or meat meal mixed with 
'bran, half and half, always befpre the 
little chicks, besides feeding them 
plenty of green food. The constipa- 
tion in April and May came from that 
chick feed. A little Epsom salts in 
their drinking water, and considerably 
more green food would have cured 
that. For little chicks, about a tea- 
spoonful to a quart of water would be 
sufficient. Another thing for little 
chicks — they must be kept away from 
the older fowls; they never do well 
if they run together. The soda was 
the right treatment for the old hens, 
but for little chickens the damage was 
done before they left the egg shell, 
so nothing could help them. For your 
200 hens I think you are feeding too 
much grain. A hen requires about five 
or six ounces of feed per day. About 
three ounces of grain (or bran, mid- 
dlings, etc.) 2 ounces green stufif and 
one ounce, or less, of animal food. 
Now, as to your green feeds: Can 
you not get potatoes, or beets, or tur- 
nips, or even pumpkins cheaply? All 
of these fed raw are great promoters 
of egg laying, and aie much cheaper 
than feeding grain. You can get ma- 
chines, vegetable cutters or grinders, 
or you can chop them up with a com- 
mon chopping knife, adding some on- 
ions occasionally, or any other vege- 
tables. You can boil any of these 
and by adding bran and cornmeal and 
blood-meal, make a cheap -and very 
palatable mash. It is in these little 
ways that you can economize in feed, 
making it cost very much less than 
when you have to buy the solid grain. 
If you can get oats as cheaplv as 
wheat, I would advise you to buy hull- 
ed oats. If you cannot get hulled 
oats, soak or scald the whole oats and 
feed those to good advantage. They 
will make the hens lay. 

The molasses-like look of the dron- 
pings comes from indigestion, brought 
on sometimes by too much cpcg; food 
or poor beef scrans. A little charcoal 
and a little bi-carbonate of soda in the 
drinking water will usually cure this. 
There are a few thinos to remember 
in feeding fowls: Thev like' a variety 
of grains and food. A variety does 
not cost any more but only gives one 
a little more trouble in mixing it. 1 
get a sack of wheat, of rolled barley, 
cracked corn and hulled oats, mix 
them in one bin and feed one handful 
of this for each hen in the litter in 



the morning; or I get what is called 
here, scratch-food. This is a variety 
of grains, wheat, cracked corn, Egyp- 
tian corn, millet, sunflower seeds, etc., 
which I get at the poultry supply 
houses already mixed. I feed a hand- 
ful of this every morning to each hen. 
I also keep before them what is called 
a dry mash— 2 parts bran, i middling, 
I corn meal, i alfalfa meal, i meat- 
meal. This I keep before them all the 
time. I also give green food (lawn 
clippings or vegetables) and table 
scraps, and when the weather is cold 
I add a little red pepper or chili pep- 
per seeds to this and I have eggs all 
the time. 



Miscellaneous Questions — Give the 
name, price and where to obtain a 
good spray pump. One that a wom- 
an can use and that will spray white- 
wash. Will whitewash stick on the 
outside sacking of hen houses with- 
out any previous preparation being 
applied? 2. What is granulated bone 
fed for? How soon should it be fed 
to chicks? My hens eat very little 
and pullets will not touch it. Would 
it be better to mix it in the dry hop- 
per feed? If so, how much? 3. How 
soon should oyster-shell 'be fed to 
pullet? Which is best for growing 
chicks, beef-scraps, teef-blood and 
bone or dried blood? If mixed in dry 
hopper feed, what proportion of each 
should be used? 4. What number of 
eggs a month would be considered 
good laying for a pen of 12 White 
Rocks, one year old, when laying 
well? Ought they to lay more next 
year? 5. What amount of grain 
should be fed night and morning to 
a hundred growing chickens that have 
dry hopper feed. 6. Would it be 
any advantage to always have green 
alfalfa in hoppers? 7. Have rhubarb 
leaves any value as green food? — ■ 
Mrs. M. H. S. 

Answer — You can get a good spray 
pump for spraynig whitewash for 
$1.25 at the poultrj^ supply houses. 
You will have to thoroughly wet the 
burlap on the outside of the hen 
houses or the whitewash will run ofif 
without penetrating the sacking. 2. 
Granulated bone is fed principallv for 
the phosphorus it contains. It is 
used for making, or strengthening the 
bones of the chickens, and can be fed 
to them from a few days of age. 
There is usually about ifrom five to 



MRS. EASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



ten per cent, of it in chick feed, and 
it can be fed dry in hoppers in this 
proportion, or be placed before the 
chickens as the grit and shell is. 3. 
Oyster-shell should be fed to pullets 
before they commence to lay. It also 
should 'be kept in a box before thcni 
to help themselves as they need it 
for making the egg shells. I prefer 
dried 1)lood to the others you men- 
tion, but they are all good, and T 
would advise you to use wdiichevcr 
you can get the easiest. 4. About 
180 eggs per month would be con- 
sidered .good laying for twelve White 
Plymouth Rocks, but hens bred-to-lay 
will lay more than that, averaging 
about 270 per month for one dozen. 
White Plymouth Rocks with me layed 
their best at two years of age but I 
have had them lay well up to seven 
years of age. 5. What they will eat 
up. The amount depends upon their 
size, age and appetite. Growing 
chickens should be fed "full and 
plenty." 6. Green alfalfa should not 
be fed in hoppers, for if pressed down 
in a hopper it will soon heat, ferment 
and make the chickens sick. 7. Rhu- 
barb leaves would not be desirable as 
food for chickens. They contain too 
much acid. 



Advice Wanted — Would greatly 
appreciate a little advice in regards 
to my chickens. 

1. How long should chicks be al- 
lowed to remain in the nursery after 
hatching? 

2. Will you please tell me the pro- 
per temperature of a brooder con- 
taining two-day-old chicks? 

3. At what age should I begin to 
feed wheat or larger srains to chicks? 

4. When should they ])e made to 
roost? 

5. What is the yearly average 
number of eggs per hen. 

6. What should be fed to hens in 
the evening? — S. J. 

Answer — i. Chickens should lie al- 
lowed to remain in the nursery until 
they are dried off, but they may be 
left in for twenty-four or thirty-six 
hours if desirable. 

2. I suppose you mean the heat 
under the hover. This should be 
for the second day about 90: it very 
much depends uoon the weather and 
also upon the vitality of the chicks. 
Tf they are warm enough, which is 
all we want, they will spread them- 



selves out and have a contented little 
song; if not warm, will huddle and 
crowd together, so you can soon learn 
to know their wantsr 

3. You can fed wheat mixed in 
the chick feed as soon as they will eat 
it, also Kaffir corn. They will usu- 
ally commence to eat it at about three 
weeks of age, some earlier. 

4. When you wean them from the 
brooder, or when the mother hen 
takes them on the rocjst with her. 

5. The yearly average of a farmer 
hen"s egg output is 100, that of egg 
farms is about 150, but "bred to lay" 
hens do better than that. ' I had a 
number that layed over 200 per year. 
One <jf them layed 267 eggs within a 
year. I expect we shall see a 300- 
egg hen some day. 

6. When you tell me what breed 
you are handling I will tell you what 
I consider the best food for their 
supper. Each breed needs a little 
different handling; to do its best. 



Shipping Young Chicks — Do you 

think 1 can order eggs incubated 31 
miles from here and have the yovmg 
chicks sent by stage with perfect 
safety? 

We are feeding corn of our own 
growing which is quite musty. I have 
been afraid of it, but so far cannot 
see that it has hurt them, although 
yesterday a hen sat around all day 
droopy like. 1 wondered if the musty 
corn affected her. 

Last summer I brought into the 
house some small chicks that seemed 
about to die and seeing they had lice, 
I dusted them thoroughly with bu- 
hach. The lice soon dropped off of 
them, but the chckens died. Can too 
much powder be put on them? — Mrs. 
C. S. 

Answer — Chickens could travel a 
thousand miles before they are twen- 
ty-four hours old, if packed in a box 
carefully. That is, of course, before 
they are fed. Last year I sent some 
from Los Angeles to Berkeley. They 
were out 36 hours but arrived in per- 
fect condition, all vigorous and ready 
for their first meal in their new home 
nearly a thousand miles away. 

Musty wheat or corn is very un- 
wholesome for chickens. Buhach 
would not kill. the most delicate chick- 
en or turkev, but is death to all in- 
sect life. The chickens were doubt- 
less dying before you powdered them. 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



173 



Castor-Bean Bushes — I have been 
tliinking of planting castor bean 
bushes in the chicken yard for shade, 
but was advised by a neighbor not to 
do it, as the beans woufd drop off and 
if chickens ate them they would be 
poisoned. ■ Would like your advice, 
please. The bushes grow quickly 
and make good shade so would like 
til trv them. Do you think it would 
be O' K.— J. H. S. 

Answer — 'Castor beans are poison- 
mis to both ducks and chickens if 
they eat them, so I would advise you 
to plant something else. Get cutting 
of fig trees, about ten inches long, 
bury the whole length except one 
inch, water well and you will have 
shade in a few months and fruit in 
two years. I find figs excellent in 
the chicken yard and the chickens do 
not eat the leaves and bark. Would 
advise your planting also other fruit 
trees such as plum, peach, apricot. 
The chicken droppings fertilize these 
trees and the quantities of fruit you 
will have will soon repay the trouble. 
In the ineantime you might plant 
sunflowers. They make good shade 
and their seed is excellent food for 
the chickens. 



Capons — Will you kindly give us an 
article im capons? What is the de- 
mand for them, if any? What do you 
think of the difference in profits be- 
tween them and broilers? If there is 
any truth in the statements pub- 
lished in regard to capons in th^ 
Eastern markets they ought to be 
money makers here. Am fitted for 
the busine'ss, but desire more infor- 
mation in that line before attempting 
much. I think the R. I. Reds would 
make extra good ones and I should 
like marketing mature birds instead 
rif those of few months old. Capons 
for the Philadelphia market have to 
he a year old to command the best 
I)rices. — H. J. K. 

Answer — Capons bring a good price 
now in Los Angeles, especially if you 
can make a contract with some of the 
large hotels for them. This 3'Ou can 
• mlj- d9 by having a large and regu- 
lar supply. The price last year was 
from 30c to 35c per pound, which is 
a paj-ing price. Broilers pay about 
as well when j'ou take into considera- 
tion that you can turn them off at 
eight weeks of age. This would be 
your better plan, as you are limited 



for space and you would not have 
the expense and trouble of carrying 
them for another ten months. I 
would advise you to sell as broilers 
all the young males you do not wish 
to keep for breeders. This will give 
you more room for the pullets and 
3'Ou need space to have your pullets 
develop well for the fall and winter 
egg market. Capons are, undoubted- 
ly, money makers for those who have 
plenty of space, and where food is 
cheaper than it is here this year. Per- 
sonally I found that capons did not 
pay as well as roasters. These were 
i^oung roosters that were about eight 
months old and that I milk fed. I 
found I had to keep my young males 
until I could see how they would de- 
velop. ^ I began by caponizing, but 
being economically inclined, I found 
the milk-fed uncaponized eight 
months youngsters paid me best. 
Since then the market for capons has 
improved here, and if you had more 
room and could buy up young cock- 
erels, caponize them at about three 
months of a,ge and turn them off in 
the following spring, T^ast when tur- 
keys go out. you inight make some 
profit on them. It has been found 
that the Brahmas or crosses of the 
Brahma are the best for capons. 



From Far Away Alaska — Commenc- 
ing with the first of March fur the 
last three years niy chickens begin 
to lose their feathers in front of their 
neck. I feed them wheat, corn, shorts, 
cooked potatoes and cabbage. They 
have no lice. T also give them plentj' 
of charcoal and grit. I have a chick- 
en house 30x30, logs with moss be- 
tween, lined inside with shakes. I 
also keep fire in a stove to keep out 
dampness. — H. C. C, Sumdum, Al- 
aska. 

Answer — Not knowing your climate, 
scarcely like to venture an opinion 
about tlic reason for \-our hens los- 
ing their feathers. Your rations 
seem good, all except there is no ani- 
mal food in it. 1 think you should 
give them fish with their cooked po- 
tatoes. Do not feel alarmed about 
their losing their feathers as it ma}'' 
be on account of the climate. 



Chicks Dying — T have 70 chicks 
tlirce weeks old. They are fed in a 
hopper, cracked corn and chick feed, 
also have all the sour milk and field 
beets thev will eat. Thev grew won- 



174 



M'RiS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



derfuUy fast until three weeks old, 
then their legs grew weak and they 
acted drunk. What do you think is 
the trouble? 

I also want to ask you about my in- 
cubator. A great many of the fertile 
eggs fail to hatch. Some of the 
chicks break the shell and a sticky 
substance runs out around them, har- 
dens around the edges and they die. 
Can you help me? How should 
chicks be fed for broilers and how for 
breeders? — S. F. F. 

Answer — Your chickens are getting 
a too carbonaceous diet; too much 
corn and not enough oats, not enough 
green food and animal food, conse- 
quently their bodies are growing too 
fast for their legs to carry them. You 
are feeding them for broilers. If you 
want them for breeders, feed the 
chick food, adding more oats and a 
plentiful supply of green food and 
onions. Give them charcoal, also 
fine grit or coarse sand and they will 
be all right. 

Your eggs apparently have become 
too dry in the incubator. Either the 
A-entilation is at fault or you are not 
running the incubator according to 
directions. 



Henpecked Husbands — I cannot 
keep my hens from picking the combs 
of the roosters. Could you tell me 
the reason for it? Also a remedy for 
it? I have tried everything I know 
for it. I feed meat twice a week. — 
R. M. 

Answer — This habit or vice usually 
comes from a lack of green food or 
meat in the ration. Very often the 
habit is acquired by imitation and 
thus it may be introduced into a flock 
by a new bird which had contracted 
it elsewhere, or it is spread through 
the flock from a bird which is led to 
it by indigestion or other disease of 
the stomach. It is sometimes started 
by lice. The hen sees one crawling 
on her mate's comb and tries to peck 
at it, wounds the comb, tastes the 
warm sweet blood and keeps up the 
habit. The others imitate her until 
the poor henpecked husband is in a 
sorry plight. The preventive is plenty 
of green food, plenty of exercise and 
animal food. The cure, the hatchet 
for the worst hens, or if they are too 
valuable, let them run without the 
male bird, only admitting him to the 
pen for an hour a day in the after- 



noon. Give the hens a good run in 
a grass-covered yard. Feed plenty of 
green vegetables; onions chopped are 
particularly efficacious. If the yard 
is small, prepare a scratching shed, 
covering the floor deeply with straw 
and scatter grain in the straw for the 
morning meal, so the fowls will be 
compelled to scratch and work to find 
it. Add bi-carbonate of soda to the 
drinking water in the proportion of 
about 20 grains to the quart; put a 
small quantity in the food, or nail up 
a piece of salt pork for the hens to 
peck. 

Severe Climate — -Do White Leg- 
horns stand a severe climate well? — • 
Alberta, Canada. 

Answer — White Leghorns are a 
healthy and vigorous bird, but the 
large - combs of the Single Comb 
breed are easily frozen on account 
of their size, especially in a country 
where the temperature falls to zero 
or below. If a hen's comb freezea 
severely, she will not lay for three 
months. On this account I think it 
would be advisable for you to have 
the Rose Comb Leghorns, or fowls 
with small combs. The comb seems 
to be the part of the fowl to freeze 
the quickest, and you should use care 
that your fowls do not sleep in a 
draught during the winter. 



Nothing in It — We expect to get a 
pen of White Plymouth Rocks later 
on, but for the present want to buy 
(Common hens, perhaps about 400 hun- 
dred. These will be Leghorns, Ply- 
mouth Rocks and mixed. We have 
potatoes, green vegetables, etc., corn 
and plenty of wild grass but would 
have to buy anything else needed. 
How old hens would it pay to buy, 
as I doubt whether we can get pul- 
lets and we would have 10 prepare 
to fight lice among such a collection. 
— D. B. B. 

Answer — It would take an expert 
and an old one, too, to make any 
money out of your proposition. For 
a novice there is no money in it and 
probably a heavy loss. It is the pul- 
lets that make the winter and fall 
layers and if you get a number of 
old hens or even if they are only two 
year-olds they will probably not lay 
till next spring, and you will have all 
the expense of keeping them till then 
and the trouble of taking l-liem 
through the moult, and most likely 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTION'S AND ANSWERS 



175 



roup and colds will break out amongst 
them and get your whole place af- 
fected with sickness. 

You would make more money by 
paying twice as much for pullets. 

Which Breed and Which Specialty? 

— Am thinking seriously of trying the 
broiler and fryer with a capon line 
production, rather than an egg pro- 
duction, and want to know your opin- 
ion of success in making a specialty 
of that line. 

What breed of fowl would you rec- 
ommend? They, of course, should 
have strong vitality and mature early. 
Would the Rhode Island Reds fill 
the condition? — "E." 

Answer — The broiler and fryer 
business depends upon what contracts 
you can make with the hotels. A 
breeder that I know, who has large 
contracts, gets $6.00 per dozen for 
chickens weighing a pound each. It 
costs him about 18 cents a chicken to 
feed and raise, not counting his own 
labor. He will therefore make 32 
cents a piece on his fowls. Of course, 
this means work and plenty of it. It 
takes from six ' to eight weeks to 
raise a broiler; fro'n eight to twelve 
weeks a fryer. 

iCommission men and markets do 
not give as high a price as hotels or 
restaurants. Of course, I cannot 
judge what would be your best mar- 
ket in your little city. I suppose you 
would have to go to San Francisco 
and there would be all the expense 
of e.xpressage or freight to deduct 
from your profits. If you realize that 
I do not know how or where you 
could sell, or at what price, and that 
I do not know the price of food, etc., 
in your localty, you will see how 
difficult it is to give you any advice 
on the subject. 

The Rhode Island Reds are a very 
vigorous fowl, and I think would suit 
you admirably for broilers and fryers. 

Spankled Hamburgs and Broilers — 

Ci) What do you know about the 
Silver Spangled Hamburg fowls? Are 
they worth keeping? (2) How do 
they compare with the Leghorns? I 
only know that they are pretty and I 
would like to have some but do not 
know anything else about them. I 
have the White and Brown Leghorns 
but I like different kinds if it is ad- 
visable to have them. I want to know 
into a larger poultry business. Would 



if it be best to have only one kind, or 
would it be wise to have different 
kinds? (3) Which of the large breeds 
would be best for early broilers? (4) 
By crossing a large breed with a 
smaller would the chicks be ready for 
market earlier than if pure bred? — 
Mrs. B. H. K. 

Answer — I have known the Silver 
Spangled Hamburgs all my life well, 
till I came to California. They are 
a most beautiful bird; splendid layers 
of a white egg which, considering the 
small size of the bird, are large. It is 
by crossing the Hamburgs with many 
of the larger breeds that the egg lay- 
ing quality has been given to some of 
the recently made breeds such as the 
Orpington, Silver Wyandotte, etc. 
(2) In comparison to the Leghorn 
they are an older breed, being bred 
in England over two hundred years. 
They are about the size of the Leg- 
horns but have a plumper body. 
They mature very early and are con- 
sidered a very hardy fowl. I do not 
know why there are not more of 
them in California. It is best to have 
only one class of fowl but if you 
want to keep more you will have to 
fence them away from each other or 
they will mix. (3) The Wyandottes 
and Rocks are considered the best 
for early broilers, tut the Leghorns 
if properly fed for broilers make very 
good, very early, small and plump 
ones. (4). No. It depends upon the 
feeding. If you cross breed you can 
never tell after which parent the 
young will take and you will prob- 
ably have an irregular lot of young, 
some large, some small, some with 
nice plump little bodies and others 
with boney frames. For the market 
you want them as even as possible 
so that they all look alike, and to 
have them all alike you must keep to 
the pure bred .fowls. You will find 
that in time the pure bred birds pay 
better than any others. 



"Up Against It" — I am one of the 
very large number of chicken raisers 
who are constantly "getting up 
against it" in one way or another and 
rush to you for advice. I have about 
three dozen chickens on the back of 
my lot, the range they have being 
50x80 feet. They are "just chicken," 
having been hatched last February 
from market eggs purchased from the 
grocery. Have been feeding wheat 
and cracked corn mixed, also cabbage 



176 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



at noon, and am .getting on an aver- 
age about one dozen • eggs per daj-. 
Have five or six old hens, age uncer- 
tain. ' Among these are four Blue An- 
dalusians, three of which are laying. 
The fourth layed until about three 
weeks ago when she quit, but was ap- 
parently healthy until two or three 
days ago when she became droopy. 
I thought possibly she might have 
liver trouble, so doctored her for that, 
but she got no better, and this morn- 
ing died. I opened her and found 
the egg bag completed filled with 
what appeared to be congealed yolk 
of eggs. This mass of matter, a lump 
about as large as a man's fist, was 
spoilt and of about the consistency of 
the yolk of a hard boiled egg. Can 
you tell me what the trouble was and 
what to do to prevent its occurrence 
in the other hens? 

A neighbor of mine is also in a lit- 
tle trouble. She has a nice flock of 
R. I. Reds and also a. flock of White 
Wyandottes. They are all apparent- 
ly in fine health but do not lay. They 
are nine months old. They are fed 
clean wheat. Have charcoal, grit and 
shells and up to a few days ago were 
fed stock beets. Would the beets 
cause the chickens to droop and the 
skin turn black or dark purple? A 
cockerel in the above flock having 
been fed beets for quite a while turned 
sick and his comb turned almost 
black; some of the hens were also 
aflfected but not so bad. 

One more case: A fine large hen of 
the above mentioned Wyandottes 
was found dead this morning. She 
was to all appearances well and ate 
her supper last night as usual. Upon 
opening her I found a clot of blood 
around the heart. This is probably 
what killed her, but what caused it? 
She was very fat and had a healthy 
looking comb. There wa? not a 
trace of any trouble other than that 
mentioned: neither was there any 
eggs* — G. B. B. 

Answer — Your Blue Andalusian had 
what is called an ovarian tumor. This 
occurs, but not very often, in old 
hens. Treatment is, of course, im- 
possible in these cases, as the nature 
of the disease can hardly be deter- 
mined until after the bird's death. If 
such abnormal conditions are fre- 
quently found, it is an indication tnar 
there is a predisposition in that direc- 
tion in that strain .,{ birds. Your 
neighbor is not feeding her fowls a 



properly balanced ration, and I think 
they are getting their food without 
suflicient exercise. I judge this from 
their not laying, from the color of 
their combs, and from the clot of 
blood around the heart. This came 
from her being too fat, weakening the 
muscles of the heart so that a blood 
vessel became ruptured. Such a 
death can neither be foreseen nor 
treated. 

The beets are beneficial to fowls 
and had nothing to do with their 
sickness. There seems to be a lack 
of green food and anin*al food in your 
neighbor's rations, and lack of exer- 
cise of the fowls. Let her give them 
a little bi-carbonate of soda in the 
drinking water; a small teaspoonful to 
every (|uart of water. 



Geese and Ducks — I have read with 
interest your answers to questions in 
the Tribune in regard to poultry rais- 
ing, so will come to you with my plea. 

1 would like to know what care 
duck and geese eggs should have 
when a hen is setting on them instead 
of the goose or duck. Also what food 
should they have when first hatched? 

.\nswer — Geese and duck eggs re- 
quire more heat and a longer period 
of incubation than hens' eggs. Five 
goose eggs are sufficient to place un- 
der a hen, and be sure that she turns 
the eggs every day or the gosling will 
be a cripple. The goose eggs are 
heavy for a hen to turn and for this 
reason and also because they require 
more heat the hen should not have 
more than five to care for. From nine 
to eleven duck eggs are the number, 
fiu- the same reasons, that should 'be 
given to a hen. Goose eggs require 
thirty days of incubation, duck eggs 
twenty-eight. Hens are apt to desert 
them towards the last and should be 
watched, as they get tired of waiting 
for their chicks to come out. I also 
have had hens that were so much 
afraid of the queer green looking 
babies they hatched out that they 
would kill them. They seein to know 
that they are not proper chicks. T 
feed the little geese hard boiled eggs 
chopped fine and cracker crumbs 
moistened with water and sprinkle a 
little sand on the food. This is the 
first food; the next day they get the 
same v.-ith some lettuce chopped fine, 
and after this I add breakfast oats 
vv'ith it and bran. As earK' as pos- 
sible I put the geese out on to the 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



177 



lawn: take the hen away from them 
and put them into a box in the wood 
shed or kitchen if the nights are cool, 
or if I am afraid of cats or_ other 
marauders. They do not require heat 
after a few days; sometimes not after 
the first day. It depends upon the 
weather. Geese are the easiest of 
fowls to raise. They are a grazing 
bird arid must have a pasture of some- 
thing green to graze on. When 
young they should not have whole 
grain, but a mash of bran and corn 
meal wnth a little animal food in it 
and alw^ays grass or alfalfa to graze 
on. 

Ducks do well treated in the same 
way, remembering to give them a lit- 
tle sand with each meal. 

Distinguishing Pullets — I have 18 
Barred Plymouth Rock hens, some of 
which are too old to be profitable 
layers. I would like to kill them off 
for table use but cannot distinguish 
them from the yearling pullets. Can 
you tell me how to do so? — !\Irs. 
G. V. 

Answer — Unless you know your 
fowls well it is difficult to distinguish 
yearlings from older hens. The older 
hens have usually rougher legs, but 
not always, and their feathers are 
more faded than the younger; they 
are often heavier and they are more 
"bossy" in their ways, do not lay as 
manv eggs, are lazier and fatter and 
moult later, and when you come to 
eat them you will find them tougher. 



Water Glass — A few weeks ago you 
had an article on water glass, and I 
thought of trying it, but was told that 
it was too late, as the eggs were no 
good after April. Will you kindly 
answer in next Tribune and greatly 
oblige.— M. B. H. 

Answer — You can put eggs down to 
preserve them in water gla^^ at any 
time of the year, only provided that 
•the eggs are perfectly fresh when you 
put them into the solution and that 
you keep them well covered with it. 
They should be kept in a cool place, 
such as a cellar. 



some lettuce or chard, and they seem 
to want to eat whole wheat thrown 

down for the hens. Grit and syster- 
shells are kept before them all the 
time. 

Would it do t(i let three-week-old 
chicks eat much whole wheat? — C. ' 
F. L. 

Answer — The feeding is all right 
and whole wheat will not hurt the 
chicks, as early as they want to eat 
it. It is good for them. From the 
symptoms you describe I think your 
chicks have lice and mites. These 
will kill them. The Mediterranean 
class (Leghorns) sometimes make 
such a vigorous growth of feathers 
that it seems to weigh the little fel- 
lows down and I have found that cut- 
ting their wings as close as possible 
wthout drawing blood relieved them 
from the weight. 



Fall on Their Sides and Die — When 

our little chicks arc aliout three weeks 
old manj' commence to stand uoriglt 
and droop their wings and tails and 
fall ovcM- on their side? and die in a 
few hours. We give them chick feed. 



Dipping Hens — Would you be so 
kind as to write and let me know 
about dipping hens, etc.? I have a 
Hock of somewhere between five and 
six hundred. I notice some of them 
have lice and bunches of nits on their 
feathers. Whenever I have caught a 
hen I have greased her well, but this 
would take too long to go through 
the bunch. Is there any dip that 
would be strong enough and do no 
harm to the birds that would kill the 
nits with only one dipping? — W. B. 

Answer — As you have so large a 
f^ock of hens and do not seem able or 
inclined to pull out the feathers that 
have nits upon them, I think you will 
have to dip them twice, with an inter- 
val of five or six days. The nits are 
sure to hatch out in about five days 
after they are deposited by the lice, 
and by twice dipping them you should 
get most of them. It is an excellent, 
plan in warm weather just at the com- 
mencement of the moult to immerse 
the fowls in a diluted kerosene emul- 
sion, wetting them thoroughly to the 
skin, or dip them in strong tobacco 
water, or a solution of two per cent 
creolin or chloro naphtholeum. A 
well known poultryman gives the fol- 
lowing advice: Take the strongest 
and purest tobacco. 25 cents' worth 
being ample to clean ofif three hun- 
dred fowls. Make the decoction quite 
strong. Tf the user will observe a 
few points, no one will ever regret 
using tobacco to kill lice and not a 
solitary one will be left. 



178 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



First, if the dipping is done out of 
doors., the thermometer should be at 
least 80 in the shade; second, the 
water should never be more than 
blood warm, say 98 degrees; third, 
and this is the most important point, 
every solitary feather must be made 
soaking wet, else you will not make a 
clean job of it. In dipping all fowls 
having heavy plumage, like the Brah- 
mas and Cochins, the feathers must 
be raised with the hand and the water 
.allowed to thoroughly wet the bird to 
the skin. This takes from one to two 
minutes for large* well feathered 
fowls. If a dry feather is left there 
will be lice upon it. 'Db not dip the 
head under, but when the fowl is 
quiet dip the head until all is under 
up to the eyes. When they will not 
hold still, use a small sponge and wet 
the top of their heads. No one who 
has fowls troubled with lice need fear 
to try this. It is very effective. 

You must thoroughly clean the 
houses to get rid of the lice, and 
paint the perches with a good lice 
paint or liquid lice killer. 

Give the hens a nice freshly dug up 
dust bath and they will keep them- 
selves clean of lice. You can add one 
of the good lice powders to the dust 
bath if you wish. 

Feeding Little Chicks — I will have 
an incubator hatch out next Wednes- 
day. What S'hall I fed them? I am 
going to use the mother-hen brooder, 
and how long must I keep them in 
the brooder house before letting them 
in the yard and in the open air. The 
trouble I had last year was bowel 
complaint after a few days. They 
would get diarrhoea and I soon lost 
nearly all of tihem. Tell me just how 
to feed them to prevent this trouble 
and what to do if they get it. 

Also tell me if cayenne pepper is 
injurious in any way to laying hens, 
or if it is good, and for what. If 
I sawed a barrel in two and used the 
preparation for preserving eggs would 
it be all right or must they be covered 
more tightly than I could fit a cover 
on such a receptacle? — ^Mrs H. S. W. 

'AJnswer — Whcin chicks d'ie from 
diarrhoea before they are a week or 
ten days old, it is usually caused 
from the eggs being over heated or 
chilled, one or the other, in the in- 
cubator before they are hatched. 
Also beins: chilled the first three days 
of their life in the brooder. This 



heating or chilling prevents the yolk 
of the e^^ which is drawn up into 
the bowel cavity of the chick the day 
before it is hatched out, from digest- 
ing. This gives the diarrhoea from 
which they die. 

Chicks should not be fed for thirty- 
six 'hours after they are hatched. 
That is the earliest. I then feed them 
coarse sand and water and chick 
feed. The chick feed is simply a 
number of grains, the principal of 
these should be cracked wheat and 
steel cut or rolled oats. In most 
places at the poultry supply houses 
you can get a good chick feed al- 
ready mixed. I always use this for 
the first three or four weeks, gradual- 
ly adding to it milled oats, wheat and 
kaffir corn until when they are large 
enoug'h to leave the brooder, their 
food consists of kaffir corn, wheat 
and hulled oats, or a good mixed 
"scratch food" which is prepared by 
most of the poultry supply houses. 

Cayenne pepper is a stimulant, 
good to be used when hens take 
cold, or in damp, chilly weather and 
will stimulate the egg laying in the 
winter. The dose is a teaspoonful 
twice or three times a week in cold 
weather for a dozen hens. 

About preserving eggs, see the ar- 
ticle in this book. 

Feeding in General — I have about 
fifteen hens and pullets and one 
Barred Rock cockerel. They have 
free range and plentj^ nf separated 
milk (sweet) to drink. We have not 
had over two weeks of weather that 
chickens could not get green food. 
These are the questions I would like 
to ask: 

ist. If they have free range will 
they get enough green food, if it is 
grown near, such as clover, kale, let- 
tuce and cabbage? 

2nd. If they need other animal 
food than the milk, what would you 
advise me to purchase and how late 
in the spring and bow early in the 
fall should it be fed? • 

Trd. I see charcoal recommended; 
will the charcoal in the wood ashes 
from a cookstove be sufficient? 

4th. Of what value are sunflower 
seeds and millet for poultry? 

.Sth. Will cooked or raw A'ege- 
tables take the place of grain or green 
food? I feed my chickens the scraps 
from the table and some erain. 

6th. Will you please tell me what 
amount to feed, as I am afraid of 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



1/9 



over-feeding in some thin.o;s and lack- 
ing in others? — ^Mrs. F. M. I. 

Ansyver — ist. Yes, but when green 
feed is grown for chickens it is best 
to cut it ofif and feed it to them or 
they will destroy the vegetables by 
eating into the heart of them. 

2nd. If they are on free range and 
have plenty of separated milk I do 
not think they will require other 
meat, esp^ecially if fed table scraps. 

3rd. Charcoal from the wood 
ashes from the cookstove will be 
sufficient until you have over a hun- 
dred hens. 

4th. Sunflower seeds are fattening 
and should be used at moulting time 
to assist the feathers to fall out. Mil- 
let is a small seed and its chief value 
consists in making the hens work to 
get it and eat is slowly. I do not 
like it for small chickens as it is very 
hard of digestion. It is also injuri- 
ous to little turkeys on that account. 

5th. Cooked or raw vegetables will 
partly take tiTe place of green food. 

6th. A Plymouth Rock hen should 
have about six ounces of food per day. 
Of this amount about two ounces may 
be green food and the balance table 
scr-aps, cooked' vegetable and grain. 
I do not know what your table scraps 
consist of; too much bread will make 
the hens fat. It is a good plan to mix 
a little bran with the table scraps and 
cooked vegetables. Chopped onions 
and chopped chili peppers or chili 
pepper seeds are very wholesome for 
hens in moderate quantities and will 
increase the egg output in winter. 
One onion and a tablespoon of pep- 
per seed for your fifteen hens per 
day, will act as a stimulant and tonic 
and bring more eggs. 



A Variety of Queries — I must again 
ask your advice and a few questions. 

1. Should beef scraps be given to 
chicks as soon as chick food is given? 

2. How early should chicks be 
made to scratch for their food? 

3. Is the White Plymouth Rock 
a good winter layer? 



4. Is barley any special benefit to 
poultry? 

5. W'hat is a good ration for hens 
to produce a gobdly amount of eggs? 

6. W'hen ought pullets to be sep- 
arated from cockerels? 

7. Is it good or is it injurious to 
have the open front of a house facing 
towards the west? Which is best, 
beef scraps or green cut bone? If 
the lice powd^er gets into the birds' 
eyes will it injure them? — ^C. W. S. 

Answer — In most of the chick food 
that is sold at the supply stores there 
is beef scrap already mixed in the 
chick feed. You will have to inquire 
of the salesman and if there is none 
add beef scrap and fine granulated 
bone at the rate of ten per cent of 
the weight of the chick feed. 2— 
The chicks should scratch from the 
time they are two or three days old. 
3 — White Plymouth Rocks are ex- 
cellent winter layers. 4 — Barley is a 
good feed for fowls. It is best to 
have it rolled. 5 — There are a num- 
ber of good rations for hens. You 
have to remem'ber that they need 
about six ounces of food per day, and 
that the ration should be composed 
of green food, animal food, and grains 
or their by-produces. You can either 
mix it yourself or get it already mixed 
at the supply stores. Green cut bone, 
if it is fresh and sweet, is the best 
animal food for fowls that you can 
g-ive them, but it must be fresh and 
if you cannot get it quite fresh, a 
good well dried beef scrap makes a 
very good substitute. 6 — P'ullets 
should be separated from the cock- 
erels when the latter become trouble- 
some. 7 — Have the open side of the 
house away from the nia:ht breeze 
and also away from the direction of 
the rains. Here the rain comes from 
the southeast and the night breeze 
also from the east, therefore, it is a 
good plan in this locality to have the 
house open towards the West. Lice 
powder would not benefit the fowls' 
eyes and some kinds would be very 
injurious to the eyesight. 



FROM THE SANDWICH ISLANDS 



Poultry in Honolulu — The following 
letter from the Hawaiian Islands in- 
terested nie very much and I think a 
reply to the numerous questions may 
benefit others in similar circum- 
stances: 

Waianae, Oahu., ]\Iarch, 1908. 

Dear Mrs. Basley: — 

I have been very much interested in 
your poultry pages and have been fol- 
lowing your directions in my experi- 
ments with fowls. It is about a year 
since I began the so-called experi- 
ments. I started with two young pul- 
lets and a cockerel which were given 
to me. Now I have a flock of about 
forty-two, besides eight T have killed 
for home use. During this time I lost 
three fowls from disease. They con- 
tracted roup from neighbor's fowls 
and I killed them. 

I have fed the fowls wdieat, cracked 
corn, both mixed and separately, and 
soft food (lawn clippings and bran) 
once a week. At times I use blue- 
stone in the water. The pullets of the 
first setting began to lay at the age of 
six months. They lay an average of 
twelve eggs at a laying. 

Different people here have gone in- 
to the poultry business but none have 
succeeded as far as I know. There 
seems to be a ready market for eggs 
at 30 cents a dozen and for poultry 
at $8 a dozen. 

I intend to embark in the poultry 
business on a large scale in the near 
future and wash to obtain your valu- 
able advice as to course of procedure. 

My intentions are to raise poultry 
and eggs for market. I want to ob- 
tain at least five acres of land for 
that purpose near the railroad line and 
in the neighborhood of the capital 
(40,000 population). Of the five acres 
I intend to turn at least tw-o acres 
into a good lawn, of an indigenous 
grass of these Islands, which is much 
relished by fowls and in fact by ail 
animals. There are no winters here 
and the grass is green and insects 
plentiful the whole year round. The 
feed for chickens out here costs at 
an average of i]4. cents per pound by 
the ton. 

I intend to build coops of the open 
front kind. For the purpose of breed- 
ing (to renew the flock and to ob- 



tain poultry for mai'ket), I intend to 
keep separate about twenty hens and 
about two roosters. 

Taking into consideration the above 
conditions and intentions, I wish you 
would kindly answer the following 
questions: 

1. Would you advise a general pur- 
pose breed or two breeds, kept sepa- 
rately; one for egg production and the 
other for table fowls? At present I 
have mongrel fowls. 

2. Would eggs shipped from Cali- 
fornia arrive in good condition for 
hatching? 

3. Could I gets eggs through you 
for hatching? 

4. Would shortage of lime de- 
crease egg production? 

5. What would you advise in re- 
gard to grit, lime and animal food 
(beef scraps, etc.)? Are they needed 
and how should they be supplied? 

6. What is the average weight of 
Plymouth Rocks and Leghorns, say 
six months old? My fowls average 
about four pounds. 

7. How long will eggs keep before 
spoiling? 

8. Is corn meal for fowls the same 
as for table use? 

9. What is the hopper and how is 
it made,? 

10. What is the price of eggs for 
home use in California? Of eggs for 
hatching? Plymouth Rocks and Leg- 
horns? 

Ti. Would you advise the use of an 
incubator or mother hens for hatch- 
ing? 

12. How are trap nests made? 

13. Can one obtain on the average, 
as many eggs from 600 or 700 hens 
kept together on a run, as from about 
a hundred? 

14. Howr much bluestone is needed 
for a gallon of water? Which is the 
navy bean? 

15. Do roosters influence the early 
laying of pullets, or hens after sitting? 

After answering the above ques- 
tions, will you kindly outline a course 
you would folow in case you were 
here — as to kinds of feeds, breeds, etc. 
Y(nirs respectfully, F. J. Noziga. 

Answer — In replying to a letter like 
yours, I always try to consider the 



FROM THE SADNWICH ISLANDS 



i8i 



questions from your own point of 
view, and endeavor, as far as possible, 
to realize the conditions of climate, 
soil, etc., which confront you. 

Sometime ago two gentlemen, who 
had, for many years, lived in the Ha- 
waiian Islands, visited my ranch and 
greatly admired my beautiful White 
Plymouth Rocks, one remarking to 
his father, that they would have de- 
lighted the natives in former times, 
and turning to me he said, "Before 
the natives of Hawaii were converted 
to Christianity they regarded White 
Fowls as sacred and used to sacrifice 
them to their gods." He then in- 
formed me that the reason fowls were 
so costly in the Islands was on ac- 
count of the mosquitos; these annoyed 
the fowls so greatly that in some in- 
stances he said they caused their 
death, and persons who kept thor- 
oughbred fowls had to screen their 
coops with fine wire screening to keep 
out the mosquitos. It was easier for 
that reason to raise ducks than chick- 
ens, as the duck feathers were closer, 
'harder and more oily and the ducks 
having no combs, the mosquitos could 
not bite them. There were large 
flocks of ducks kept by iChinese in or 
near Honolulu. 

About this time I had a letter from 
a lady in Hawaii, describing a disease 
very prevalent among hens there, and 
asking my advice. I diagnosed it as 
chicken pox, and advised putting car- 
bolic salve on the spots. These spots, 
she said, looked like warts at first, but 
rapidly ran together until nearly the 
whole head was covered; she after- 
wards wrote me carbolic salve cured 
them. I think, as I thought then, that 
the germ of the chicken pox entered 
the skin through the mosquito bite, or 
in pome way may have been implanted 
b}'' the mosquito. Chicken pox was 
then, and prol)ably still is. one of the 
difficulties in chicken raising in Hono- 
lulu. The other obstacles would 
probably be lice, mites or other in- 
jurious vermin. 

I think your plan of using open- 
front houses excellent. They are 
proving the best kind of coops in al- 
most every climate. 

Two acres of green grass sounds 
good, but choose the grass which con- 
tains the most protein, the grass that 
is the most nourishing for the fowls, 
or if you have plenty of water, plant 
alfalfa. 



To reply categorically to your ques- 
tions : 

1. I think you would make more 
money by keeping a general purpose 
breed, that is, one of the American 
class, because when their days of use- 
fulness are past, they make large and 
well flavored roasts or stews. 

2. Eggs very carefully packed and 
perfectly fresh, might stand the voy- 
age. You had better inquire of some 
of the prominent breeders in Hono- 
lulu what the hatch usually has been 
from imported eggs. 

3. Yes! 'When you decide upon 
what breed you want. 

4. Yes! And I believe that both 
3'our soil and consequently your Ha- 
waiian grasses are deficient in lime, 
but you could probably supply lime by 
shells of the shell fish or coral pound- 
ed up. 

5. Grit, lime and animal food are 
absolute essentials not only for egg 
making, but also to keep the bens 
healthy. You should be the best judge 
as to how to secure these in your Id- 
eality. Grit should be hard and sharp, 
that is, each particle should have three 
sharp corners; at one time I supplied 
the lack of grit by getting broken 
crockery and glass from a china store 
and grinding or pounding it up. The 
poultry supply houses now put an ex- 
cellent grit on the market called "mi- 
ca grit," and in many places in Cali- 
fornia, a good natural grit is to be 
found in gravel quarries. One load of 
this will last a thousand fowls more 
than a year. Lime is best supplied 
for fowls by keeping crushed oyster 
shell always before them, or if you 
cannot get that, you can mix some 
lime in water, to about the coifsis- 
tency of pancake batter, leave it tw-en- 
ty-four hours and then pour about a 
pint out on the ground in each pen. 
It will form a flat cake and the hens 
will peck little bits ofif as they need it. 
You can also supply lime by giving 
them lime water to drink. 

About the animal food: It is rather 
difticult to give you advice regarding 
it, not being personally acquainted 
with your climate. Green cut bone is 
the best animal food that I know of 
for fowls. This is composed of bones 
and scraps of meat fresh from the 
butcher, ground or chopped up. It 
has to be fed fresh, and without any 
preservative being used, and here is 
where the trouble comes in, especially 
in a warm climate. The next best 



l82 



MRS. BASLEY''S POULTRY BOOK 



thing for use is the dried blood or 
beef scraps and dried granulated bone, 
or bone meal, but even here, care must 
be used to have them good. If tney 
have been kept in a damp or warm 
place a poisonous growth frequently 
takes place, which kills or sickens the 
fowls. A noted chicken raiser says 
milk and red pepper will bring eggs at 
any season of the year. In your place 
I would apply to prominent chicken 
raisers in Honolulu and find out vvhat 
they use for animal food. Possibly 
they may use fish. 

6. The average weight of well 
grown Plymouth Rocks is six pounds 
at six months old, for Leghorns about 
two pounds less. There is no Stand- 
ard weight for Leghorns. 

7. Eggs should be incubated as 
soon as possible after they have been 
layed. They may be kept three weeks 
if turned over every day, but the 
fresher they are the better will be the 
hatch and the stronger will be the 
chicks. 

8. The corn meal for chicks is the 
same as for table use. although an in- 
ferior and cheaper grade is often used 
for cattle and fowls. 

9. Webster defines a "hopper'' as 
"A chute, box, or a receptacle, usu- 
ally a funnel shape with an opening 
at the lower part for delivering or 
feeding any material." The hopper 
used in chicken business is a box or 
pail to contain feed, one from which 
the fowls can feed at any time with- 
out being able to get at or waste the 
food. It is sometimes made funnel 
shaped and of wood, but I like best, 
a simple box, five inches deep and ten 
broad with ends cut in shape of a 
gable, the top of the gable being six- 
teen inches from the floor of the box. 
I make a loose roof of two boards 
nailed together to fit the gable. How- 
ever, a tin lard pail hung or nailed 
against the wall and kept two-thirds 
full of feed will make a fairly good 
hopper. 

10. Eggs for market have averaged 
30 cents per dozen in this part of Cal- 
ifornia in the past year. They are 
now 55. cents. Eggs for hatching are 
of different prices, according to the 
breed and the celebrity of the breeder, 
ranging from $2 to $25 per setting, 
and from $5 to $25 in incubator lots. 

11. For a beginner in your climate, 
I would advise mother hens in prefer- 
ence to incubators and brooders. I 
think thev would understand the busi- 



ness better than you for the first year, 
meanwhile, you can be studying poul- 
try culture and taking lessons from 
the hen's methods. 

12. Trap nests are simply next 
boxes with a door to them. The door 
closes automatically 'behind the hen 
when she steps on the nest. She re- 
mains trapped in the next box until 
released by an attendant. The usual 
plan for a trap nest is something like 
the figure 4 trap for trapping wild 
birds and pigeons. You can find good 
plans advertised in the poultry pa- 
pers, or by going to the Hawaii Agri- 
cultural Experiment Station. The spe- 
cial agent in charge can let you see 
plans of the trap nests used at the 
Maine Experiment Station. 

13. No! It has been proved by re- 
peated experiments that the smaller 
flocks give a better return pro-rata, 
consequently in colony houses on 
large ranches fifty hens is the average 
number kept in each house. 

14. Navy beans are the white beans 
used generally in "pork and beans." 
A small bit of bluestone (sulphate of 
copper) the size of a navy bean in a 
quart of drinking water Is the right 
amount and will kill the germs of 
roup and catarrh, so preventing a 
spread of the disease. 

15,. No! Hens and pullets will lay 
quiet as many, some think more, eggs 
without a male being in the yard with 
them. Of course the eggs will not be 
fertile. They will, however, keep 
fresh much longer and are superior 
for market purposes. 

What course would I follow — , If I 
were in Hawaii and intended as you 
do to go into the poultry business? I 
would be inquiring at the Agricultural 
Experiment Station, and also at the 
principal markets, decide which breed 
of fowls in Honolulu would bring me 
in the most money, as a market fowl. 
Also whether colored or white eggs 
are the most desirable. I would at- 
tend the poultry show, observe the 
hirds, decide which I prefer, talk to 
the exhibitors, learn the methods of 
the successful men, and follow in their 
steps, until I knew the business so 
thoroughly that I -could run without 
assistance. As for the feeds to use. I 
would say most emphatically, consult 
the director of the Hawaii Agricul- 
tural Experiment Station, or send 
there for Bulletin number 13, of that 
station. 



TURKEY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



Tomatoes for Turkeys — I am feed- 
img my turkeys a small ration of ripe 
tomatoes. Is this a proper food for 
them?— W. F. G. 

Answer — A small amount of ripe 
tomatoes will not do your turkeys 
any harm. They are very fond of 
them, and it will benefit them, al- 
though there is very little nourish- 
ment in the tomatoes. 



Turkeys Have Chicken-Pox — What 
is the matter with my young turkeys, 
and what shall I do for them? All 
over their heads and bills there are 
lumps forming like warts. Some of 
them have just a few while others 
have their heads covered with them. 
The turkeys are about half grown. 
They are not penned up and have 
plenty of green alfalfa. We feed 
wheat and meat scraps occasionally. — 
Miss M. M. 

Answer — Your turkeys have chick- 
■en-pox. The cure is to apply carbolic 
salve, or carbolated vaselme. In 
three days .bathe the affected parts 
with warm soapsuds in which are a 
few drops of carbolic acid, and again 
apply the salve. Add a little sulphur 
to their food. This will hasten the 
cure. They should be cured in a little 
over a week. Be sure to separate all 
the fowls affected from the flock. 
This will prevent the spreading of 
the disease. 



Turkeys Dying — What is the cause 
of turkeys two weeks old having feet 
crippled and crooked, and then dying? 
Will egg-shells given to chickens 
cause them to eat eggs? — A. S. 

Answer — TurkeyS' gettin,g out into 
the wet or damp grass in the morn- 
ing or 'being in damp, filthy coops, 
will cause their feet to become crip- 
pled. Egg-shells given to little chick- 
ens will not cause them to eat eggs. 
For old hens, egg-shells should either 
be baked or dried and pounded up. 

Running Bowles — I have a fine tur- 
key gobbler that is. suffering with run- 
ning of the bowels, doesn't eat and is 
quite droopy. Will you kindly sug- 
gest some remedy? It is a valuable 
turkey. — Mrs. A. W. 



Answer — Give the turkey a liver pill 
such as you use in your family, or a 
grain of calomel. Follow this with a 
grain of quinine 'given every night for 
four days. Feed rice boiled in milk, 
adding to every pint one tablespoon- 
ful of ground cinnamon. 



General Care of Turkeys^ — I would 
like to ask a few questions about tur- 
keys. You mentioned' raising them 
in a brooder, i. How warm should 
one have the brooder when the poults 
are first put in? 2. At frhe end of 
the first week what should the tem- 
perature be lowered to? 3. Where 
should we hang the thermometer? 
4. Is alfalfa meal necessary or of any 
benefit to little poults or to little 
chicks if they have all the green bar- 
ley they wil eat cut fine? — A Beginner. 

Answer — The heat under the hover 
should be about 95, The reason I say 
"about" is that on a very warm, sunny 
day it might be a little lower, but 
should the outside temperature be 
cold or the weather damp and 
gloomy, it might be up to 95 for the 
best results. 2. About 85, depending 
somewhat on the outside air and 
weather. Gradually lower the tem- 
perature till you get it to 70 or to 80, 
according to the weather. 3. There is 
a hole in the cover of your brooder 
for the thermometer to hang; 
keep your thermometer hanging there 
in its proper place. 4. No! Little 
turkeys require the succulent green, 
not the dried hay, ground up. Give 
them lettuce chopped up at first with 
every meal; then either lettuce, dan- 
delion leaves, onion tops chopped fine, 
or cabbage or the tender leaves of 
beets. Any green vegetable that you 
would eat yourself will do and also the 
green barley as long as it i& succulent 
and tender. Barley soon gets tough 
and hard and' then is not suitable for 
the little turkeys. 



Keep Separate from Chicks — ^Will 
you kindly give me some information 
concerning newly hatched turkeys? 
We have two hens and a tom. Would 
you advise keeping them away from 
chickens ?-^Mrs. C B. 



i84 



AIRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Answer — Little turkeys do much 
better when kept away from chickens. 
They require, or do better, on differ- 
ent food, and when very young re- 
quire to 'be kept quiet, ^whilst the 
chicks like to scratch and rustle. Tur- 
keys move more slowly and need rest 
and quiet. Then, again, corn, Kaffir 
corn and corn meal suit chickens, but 
ferment inside the little turkeys and 
give them diarrhoea, which is often 
fatal. Let the turkey mothers take 
care of the little turkeys and give 
them grass or alfalfa to run on and 
they will do well. \ 



Lumps on Their Head — I have been 
trying to find nut what ails my tur- 
keys. First, my young turkeys, about 
three months old, have hard lumps 
all over their heads, and some on 
their legs; they do not act sick; they 
eat well and their heads are not swol- 
len. Then, the old mother turkey 
has her head swollen in front of the 
eyes, soft and puffy; eyes mattered, 
nose running, and she acts as though 
she could' not see to pick up the feed 
off the ground, although she acts hun- 
gry. They have free range on alfalfa, 
ihave free access to a trough of sep- 
arated milk, and are fed wheat. They 
roost on top of the hen houses in the 
open air. I hope I may hear from 
you before any more of my turkeys 
are affected.— A. L R. 

Answer — Your turkeys have chick- 
en-pox. Put carbolated vaseline on 
alil of the lumps twice a week until 
cured. Give all of the turkeys a two- 
grain pill of quinine every night for 
a week. Treat the mother turkey in 
the same way. Also up her nostrils 
squirt from a sewing machine oil can 
the following: Mix two teaspoonsful 
of castor nil, one of turpentine, one 
of coal oil, one of camphorated oil 
and four drops of carbolic acid. Shake 
before using; also insert this in the 
cleft of the mouth. If you give the 
turkeys chopped onions, it is an excel, 
lent tonic for the liver, and will pre- 
vent their taking cold and hasten the 
cure of the chicken-pox. 

Breeding Turkeys — Your advice re- 
garding my ducks was so good that I 
am going to trouble you about an- 
other matter, but first I must tell you 
I have followed your advice, and my 
ducks are doing fine, and appear to 
have fully recovered. I bought some 
turkeys last spring, four hens and a 



tom, and as I had never had any 
poultry of that kind, I did it by way 
of an experiment. I, did very well for 
a beginner, and as I heard it was bad 
to inbreed I soW the tom and bought 
another about a week ago. It i& a 
young tom hatched early last spring, 
and now they tell me I will not be 
able to raise any turkeys from him, as 
he is too young. I paid a big price 
for him and am not able to afford to 
buy another, so am in something of a 
quandry. Will you kindly tell me if 
I have made a mistake in buying a 
young tom? My turkeys are the com- 
mon black kind, and there are very 
few that keep turkeys around here, so 
that I had some trouble to get the 
one I have.— Mrs. W. D. W. 

Answer — It was a pity that you sold 
your tom, especially as you had such 
good luck with his of¥-spring. It 
would have been better to have kept 
ih'im than, to get a very young tom. 
However, if your young tom is well 
developed and vigorous, you will be 
able to raise turkeys from him. You 
say he was hatched early last spring. 
In that case he should have a fairly 
well developed beard, a tuft growing 
nn his breast. When this is develaped, 
it is a sign that he is mature enough 
to be mated. If he is too young, the 
eggs wiill be infertile, or the poults 
will be small and perhaps delicate. 
He may make a good breeder for next 
year. 

Turkeys with a Bad Cold — I would 
like a little advice in regard to my 
turkeys. I have two which seem to 
have a bad cold. Their nose fills up 
and their heads swell up in front of 
the eyes so they can hardly see, and 
they are constantly making a cough- 
ing noise. They have a good appetite 
and do not seem to lose much flesh. 
They were very heavy when they 
took sick. They are the Bronze tur- 
kevs and full grown — Mrs. S. 

Answer — Your turkeys have a bad 
cold, which may turn into roup. Mix 
the followin.'g and s^quirt a drop up 
each nostril and in the cleft of the 
mouth. I use the small sewing rria- 
chine oil can. Mix two teaspoonsful 
of castor oil. one each of turpentine, 
kerosene and camphorated oil with 
four drops of carbolic acid. Also give 
the turkeys every night for a w-eek a 
two-grain pill of quinine. Add chop- 
ped onion and a teaspoonful of sul- 
phur to their mash at night. 



TURKEY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



185 



A Lack of Green Food — I have a 
torn turkey that is sick. He was a 
year old last May and about six weeks 
ago he would not eat. He did not 
look sick, and would strut and gobble 
a little, but did not eat. I gave him 
Carters' liver pills and he soon got 
all right. About a week ago he be- 
gan to get ofif his feed again, and I 
at once began lo doctor him. Have 
given 'him liver pills and germazone, 
but he has not eaten anything since 
last Wednesday. Can you tell me 
what ailsi him and what to do for him? 
He is a very valuable bird and I am 
anxious to have him get well. His 
usual feed is bran, barley meal, al- 
falfa meal and beef scrap in the morn- 
ing and wheat and Kafifir corn at 
night, with plenty of grit and oyster 
shell.— Mrs. G. H. B. 

Answer — I think j-our turkey re- 
quires more green food than you are 
giving him as you only mention al- 
falfa meal. Give him now, a quinine 
pill (two grains) ever}^ night for a 
week. Add charcoal and chopped on- 
ions to his mash in the morning, and 
plentjr of green food once or twice a 
day. Give him as large a range as 
possible, or if you cannot give him 
range, let him out on your own lawn 
for two hours before sundown. What 
he needs is fresh green food and 
chopped onions for the liver tonic. 



because he may have intestinal worms, 
although the symptoms are more like 
kidney trouble. 



Sick Gobbler — I write again in re- 
gard to a fine gobbler. He was 
hatched last May. He has been sick 
about ten days. Just sits around and 
does not walk much. Eats very ilittle, 
and his droppings are nearly all white 
and small in quantitj^ His food has 
been rolled 'barley, wheat, and we 
have nine acres in green barley. He 
has plenty of clean, pure water and is 
not lousey, aSi I dust my turkeys with 
insecticide every week. When he first 
drooned around I gave him some liv- 
er pills, but he does not get much bet- 
ter. I hone you may be able to tell 
me something that will help him as 
I should feel very badly to lose him. 
—Mrs. S. H. J. 

Answer — I would advise you first 
to stop dusting that 'gobbler with in- 
sect powder, as it may be disagreeing 
with him. Secondly, I would give 
him small liver pills, and at the same 
time, for at least a week, a pill of one 
or two grains of quinine every night. 
Also notice his droppings, if possible, 



Sore Foot — I have a turkey hen 
with a sore foot. I. think she must 
have sprained it flying off the roosts. 
I have tried several remedies, but 
none of them seem to do any good. 
It is very feverish. Please tell me 
how to treat it. — Miss A. E. C. 

Answer — ^Bathe the foot with the 
following mixture: One cup of vine- 
gar, one cup of turpentme, one heap- 
iu'^ tablespoon saltpetre. If the tur. 
kep is feverish, give her one drop of 
aconite in a tablespoon of milk. If 
the swelling is caused by a stone 
bruise and it festers, you will have 
to lance it and keep it well dressed 
with peroxide of hydrogen, then 
sprinkle iodoform on it and keep it 
bandaged. If it is only a sprain the 
first will cure it. 



TapeviTorm in Turkeys — I have over 
TOO turkeys that seem to be healthy 
but do not grow as they should. I 
find now they are full of long worms, 
probably tape worms-. What shall I 
do?— Mrs. L. B. D. 

Answer — If your turkeys have tape- 
worms the best remedy I know is 
male-fern (felix mas). It may be 
used in the form of a powder; (dose 
thirty grains to one dram) or of liquid 
extract (dose fifteen to thirty drops). 
It should be. given in the morning 
and evening .before feeding. Oil of 
turpentine is an excellent remedy for 
the common round -worm; dose one 
to three teaspoonsful in an equal 
amount of castor oil. Feeding stewed" 
garlic or raw onions will help the 
cure. 



Sick Turkey — I have had rather bad 
iluck with my turkeys. I opened one 
after it had died and found its ap- 
pendix, if such they have, full of a 
cheesv substance, and when I opened 
that it smelled very bad. You have 
probably had such cases to deal with, 
therefore I thought perhaps you 
could enlighten me a little and enable 
me to save some of them. — Mrs. W. 

Answer — It is the same trouble I 
have written about very often. It is 
caused by wrong feeding: too much 
starchy food, grain, corn, etc., and an 
insufficiency of green food. Dr. Cush- 
man recommends "something sour 



1 86 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



and something bitter." I give a liver 
pil'I. followed by quinine and sour 
milk, and keep them on .green food 
only, giving them no grain at all until 
they recover. Of course, if the dis- 
ease is allowed to go so far as' to fill 
the 'bowels with cheesy matter, there 
is no possible cure, but at the very 
first symptoms, that is, when the tur- 
keys move or walk slowly, seem 
dumpy or sleepy, by commencing 
then with something bitter and some- 
thing sour, they can be saved. 

Need a Tonic — I ihave a pair of 
Bronze turkeys, have good range for 
them and they roost in the hen house 
with about three dozen chickens. My 
turkey hen was taken sick by being 
droopy, acted like she had rheuma- 
tism, would not eat nor walk around. 
1 gave her a little liver pill each night 
for four nights after which she seemed 
quite well; fed green stuff and a small 
ration of oats and wheat and now 
she seems to be nearly blind so I 
have to hold a dish up as high as her 
head for her to see to eat. She con- 
not pick from the ground. Tlie drop- 
pings at first were thin and whitish. 
Is there anything that can be done 
for her eyesight? — Mrs. Z. M. B. 

Answer — I am sorry about your 
turkey hen. You do not say if the 
eyes appear inflamed, or if they are 
running or what other symptoms 
there are; I think, therefore, that it 
is the same old trouble and I would 
advise you to give her a one-grain 
pill of quinine every night for a week. 
It is not good for turkeys to be shut 
up in a house at night and especially 
with hens, for they need plenty of 
fresh air, also if the hens have lice 
or mites tliey go to the eyes to drink 
and they must be affecting the tur- 
keys., Give plenty of green food and 
every day an onion finely chopped. 
Onions are a very good liver and kid- 
ney tonic and the white droppings 
inclicate the kidneys are affected. 

Shipping Turkeys — Can turkey eggs 
be hatched successfully in an incu- 
liator or are they more apt to die? 
Will it hurt the little turkeys to be 
carried on the car any great distance? 
—Mrs. A. P. 

Answer — Turkey eggs can be 
hatched in an incubator, if you don't 
mix them with other eggs, other- 
wise they do better under the hen. 



They can be raised in brooders, and 
it will not hurt them to travel on the 
cars if they do not get chilled. 



Hatching Turkey Eggs — Would 
like more advise in regard to turkey 
eggs. Should the temperature be 
higher than one hundred and two de- 
grees and must it stand at that all 
through the hatch? How often must 
the water be drawn off? Is it best 
to leave them in three days before 
turning? Should the lamp chimney 
be washed with water? Should I keep 
the windows and doors open in the 
room for proper ventilation, and 
especially at night as it is cool and 
the temperature is hard to keep at 
I02 degrees? I have kept the win- 
dows and doors open today and the 
thermometer stays at 102, but at night 
it falls as low as 90 degrees. The 
room registers 50 degrees at night. — 
^Irs. A. P. 

Answer — If you had told me the 
make of incubator you are using I 
could have answered your inquiries 
more intelligently. Turkey eggs be- 
ing larger than those of the hen re- 
quire a slightly lower temperature as 
a rule. The water in the tank, or 
pipes, if you have hot water machine, 
should not be drawn off at all. The 
pipes should simply 'be kept full. 
Leave the eggs in 48 hours before 
turning them. The lamp chimney can 
be washed with hot suds or any thing 
that will make it clean. You do not 
say if it is tin or glass. 

The air in the room should always 
be fresh but the temperature of the 
room should not vary greatly, there- 
fore a cellar is a much tetter place 
for the incubator than a room, and a 
room on the ground floor is better 
than one; higher up, both on account 
of the difference of temperature and 
also on account of the vibration in 
the building. 

If the temperature in your incu- 
bator varies greatly, you certainly 
will make a failure with turkey eggs, 
and had better not attempt to hatch 
them in an incubator but use hens 
for that purpose. The temperature 
must be kept perfectly even and not 
vary more than a half degree between 
night and day in the incubator. I 
think 102, if it is a hot water ma- 
chine, will be about right to start it, 
but that depends upon where you 
hang your thermometer. Is is placed 



TURKEY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



187 



on or level with the eggs, or how high 
above them? 



hens some times but ten hens is about 
the best number. 



Cold in the Head — Will you kindly 
tell me what I can do to cure my 
turkey? He has had a cold in the 
head for over a month; foam in his 
eyes; it is clear and does not smell 
bad; bowels all right. I have used 
your mixture of oils (castor oil, coal 
oil, turpentine, camphorated oil and 
eight drops carbolic acid) in a ma- 
chine oil can, a drop in no'se and cleft 
of mouth. One quinine pill, one tea- 
spoonful sulphur and a half teacup of 
onions at night for one week. This 
cured my turkey hen and also my 
chickens. The tom is no better. He 
eats good, struts some, but gets poor- 
er. I have an old cellar in the ground 
with dirt roof for a coop and keep 
turkeys and chickens in it. Do you 
think I had better keep turkeys in a 
warm shed or stable? We have a 
very cold wind 'blowing all the time. 
I feed meat, wheat, oats, barley, cab- 
bage and other vegetables all they 
want; charcoal, grit and water with 
germozone or bluestone in it. Please 
answer as soon as possible and 
o'blige.— Mrs. E. R. 

Answer — You had better continue 
the quinine for a week each night. 
Squirt up each nostril and in the 
clerf of the mouth one drop of the 
following: Peroxide of hj'drogen, one 
part, two parts water. Do this twice 
a day for a week, then use the oils on 
alternate days with the peroxide if 
he is not well. Continue the onion, 
and if you have milk give him some. 
Examine for lice and keep the tur- 
keys separate from the chickens. Tur- 
keys do much better when allowed 
to roost out of doors or where they 
have plenty of fresh air. 



How Many Toms? — I want to ask 
you how many turkey toms I should 
have for 24 hens. I have two fine 
toms weighing about 2.2 pounds each. 
Their beards are well developed and 
they appear to be very good birds. 
Will those two be enough for 24 
hens?— Mrs. €. B. L. 

Answer — It really would be better 
to have three toms, .but under the 
circumstances I would rather risk 
having two good toms than to buy a 
third of unknown quality. 

The rule is one yearling tom to ten 
hens. One tom will do for twenty 



Little Turkeys Dying — I had eight 

little turkeys hatch the last day of the 
year. They seemed to be doing nice- 
ly until these last two weeks. I 
brought them into the house as we 
were having lots of rain. Since then 
I have lost all but one. I will notice 
them drooping a little and in a short 
time I find them dead. They eat up 
to a short time before they die. In 
the morning I give them a little 
crushed Kaffir corn, and a little chop- 
ped onion; at noon a little curd and 
at night Kaffir corn — 'Mrs. E. G. D. 

Answer — -It is I think wrong feed- 
ing that causes your loss of turkeys. 
Corn oi- Kaffir corn ferments in the 
little gizzard and is the cause of all 
the trouble. Of course, when the tur- 
keys were outside they could pick up 
a little green, but shut in the house 
they were obliged to eat the corn. 
Many years ago I gave up feeding 
corn to young turkeys. In an article 
in this book I give the way _ I feed 
baby turkeys and I do not hesitate to 
promise you that if you follow exact- 
ly my methods you will be successful 
with turkeys. 

Feeding Corn — I have some fine 
Bronze Turkeys hatched I\Iay ist, and 
raised by your directions. They are 
beginning to get quite red around the 
head and neck, with the skin near 
the top quite blue; they are almost as 
high as they will be. Is it safe to be- 
gin feeding them corn yet? I feed 
now a mash of alfalfa meal and bran, 
mixed with milk most of the time 
and rolled barley and wheat, with 
what green food I can. — Mrs. M. C. D. 

Answer — If you want to add corn 
for fattening your turkeys, you can 
do so by adding by slow degrees, 
corn meal to the mash. It is the al- 
falfa meal and the green food that is 
keeping your turkeys healthy, so do 
not give up these. You can add 
cracked corn to the rolled barley and 
wheat, adding only one handful at 
first and after a few aays, two hand- 
fuls, etc. 



Beginner's Questions — <.\m thinking 
of trying to raise turkeys, the white 
kind; have plenty of room for them 
and very nice range, and think tnis 
dry climate would be an ideal place to 



i88 



MRS. BASLEVS POULTRY BOOK 



mise them. Would you advise try- 
ing to raise them without any brooder 
providing we have no ben ready to 
set when the eggs are received?— 
R. C. M. 

Answer — I think you would find 
the White Holland turkeys do well 
in the climate of Tucson, especially 
if you follow niy directions for the 
feeding and care of them. I would 
not advise you to try hatching them 
in an incubator, because they do not 
iiatch well with common hens eggs. 
Better borrow or buy a hen and be 
sure you siprinkle her wit'h buhach 
powder every five days while she is 
sitting, so she may be entirely free 
from vermin when the little turkeys 
hatch out. 



Liver Trouble — We are in trouble 
with our little turkeys, and would 
like to ask you to help us. They were 
fine, strong fellows until a few days 
ago, when four of them suddenly 
died. I just noticed two of them, a 
little drooping in the afternoon, and 
four were dead the next morning. 
There was the slightest touch of 
diarrhoea noticeable, and I immediate- 
ly put a little germazone in their 
water, and they have had it for sev- 
eral days. They have no signs of it 
now but four more died last night, 
and several others are drooping. We 



made an examination this morning 
and found the liver all blotched and 
spotted all over in dark rings. That 
is all we could find wrong. The giz- 
zard was healthy and full of grit and 
seemed perfect and in order. — Mrs. 
A. H. 

Answer — The spotted liver is all 
that killed them. It denotes conges- 
tion of the liver. This is usually 
brought on by wrong feeding, or over- 
feeding, but it also comes from their 
taking cold; either from being too 
warm at night, under the chicken 
hen, getting then hot and sweaty, and 
then coming out in tbe morning into 
the cool, foggy air, which gives them 
a sudden chill. This would affect the 
liver, and make even the proper food 
disagree with them. They may take 
cold and get a chill affecting the 
liver, from running in damp .alfalfa; 
or the chicken hen may drag them 
about and make the exercise too 
much, and this also would weaken 
their liver and make them suscept- 
ible to cold, which would affect their 
liver. I can only give you these sug- 
gestions, as I do not know all your 
conditions. O'ne of the best remedies 
for diarrhoea in both chickens and 
little turkeys, is rice boiled in milk, 
with a tables.poonful of ground cinna- 
mon to every pint of milk. Rice 
given even dry will help in a case of 
this kind. 



ABOUT DUCKS 



Wrong Feeding — I raised some 
ducks last year and now just about the 
time they should lay they take sick, 
sit around, don't eat, and their drop- 
pings are areen. Mj- drakes are never 
sick but the ducks all go the same 
way. 

I just bought a. little duck and to- 
day she is ailing, so I gave her asa- 
foetida and some red pepper and 
thought that perhaps might help her. 
—Mrs. E. L. D. 

Answer — Ducks are not subject to 
diseases like chickens so I feel sure 
that you are not feeding them rightly. 
You are pro'bably giving them whole 
grain instead of ground grain and 
most likely they do not have coarse 
sand to eat and help them digest their 
food. Feed according to the direc- 
tions I have given in this book. 



Ducks and Rocks — I wrote you 
about two months ago about my in- 
toxicated duck; you informed me that 
the hissing sound was a good indica- 
tion it was a drake, which it proved 
to be, and your receipt for indigestion 
cured it. Now it is my fine flock of 
White Rocks. Last week one com- 
menced to droop its wings and act 
stupid. A man was here today and 
says it is roup. I do not think that 
it is, as there is no discharge from the 
nose and no swell head; eats heartily, 
only drooping wings and takes long 
strides when walking. I notice an- 
other is dumpy today. Do you think 
it is lice or roup? I think it is lice, 
yet I cannot find one on them. Now, 
about my ducks: Does it pay me to 
keep them? You know how ducks 
eat; they were hatched in February 
but I am not getting an egg. — Mrs. J. 
H. B. 

Answer — Drooping wings is almost 
always a sign that the lungs are af- 
fected; also I think your pullet prob- 
abh' has lice. These run so fast it is 
hard to see them. She may also have 
a little cold and bronchitis. Dust and 
fumigate for the lice, and give her a 
teaspoonful of honey and a quinine 
pilil for the bronchitis every night for 
a week. 

About your ducks: If they are Pek- 
ing, they will probably begin to lay 



in December. When once they start 
in they are pretty good layers. Ducks 
require more animal food that chick- 
ens. You will have to decide for 
yourself whether it will pay you to 
keep them or not. If they can have 
plenty of green food and plenty of 
animal food, besides sand and plently 
of crushed osyter shell, they will lay. 

Duck Eggs vs. Hen Eggs — What 
difiference, if any, should there be in 
running an incubator with duck eggs 
from hen eggs? I am very successful 
•with hen eggs tut never succeeded 
very well with duck eggs the same 
eggs hatch 90 per cent under a hen, 
and the first test from the incubator 
is about 90 per cent and then they 
die in the shell.— J. W. L. 

Answer — Duck eggs require differ- 
ent treatment than the hen eggs. Af- 
ter the first test when you take them 
out to turn them, sprinkle them every 
day with warm water. Leave them 
out a few minutes to partially dry ofif, 
fan the stale air out of the incubator 
and then replace them. By this 
means I think you will have a better 
hatch. Duck "eggs require more dry- 
ing out than hen eggs and yet the shell 
must be dampened to make it brittle. 
Putting water into the incubator does 
not do as well as sprinkling. 



Food — Good and Bad — i. Would 
lettuce make good greens to sow in 
runways for Indian Runner ducks? 

2. Will some whole wheat hurt 
them if they are provided with Rrit? 

3. At what age should ducks 
hatched in March commence laying? 

4. Will beef suet and chopped 
fresh beef do to feed them? — Mrs. F. 
H. 

Answer — i. Lettuce is good for 
all fowls and would be good for the 
ducks as long as it lasts, but I am 
afraid the little fellows would soon 
pull it all up. 

2. Whole wheat is not as good for 
little ducks as bran and cornmeal. 
See article in this book. 

3. Indian Runners hatched in 
March will commence laying in Sep- 
tember. 

4. Beef suet is not the food for 



igo 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



ducks, but if you want to fatten them, 
you might add a little of it to their 
mash. 



Incubator Ducks — We want to 
know the proper way to operate an in- 
cubator to hatch ducks. I have had 
fairly good luck hatching chickens but 
not with my ducks. I got only 40 out 
of 112 fertile eggs, and this time we 
should like to have a few directions 
to go by. 

Do they require as much as chick- 
ens as to moisture; do you sprinkle, 
also how often, and as to airing the 
eggs, what time of day and how long 
•do you advise to leave the machine 
open; ihow often do you test the 
eggs? — Mrs. W. 

Answer — Duck eggs require quite 
as much heat as those of the chickens; 
thev require more airing. Should be 
sprinkled with warm water once the 
first week, twice the second and every 
day thereafter, but do not put any 
water in the pans. Sprinkling the 
eggs helps to make the shells more 
brittle s_^o the ducks will get out 
easier. Test the 5th day an-d again 
a'bout once ever}'' week to take out 
the dead germs, as they putrify and 
are injurious to the rest. When you 
air the eggs, which you should do 
twice a day, that is every twelve 
hours, fan th.e stale air out of the in- 
cubator and then close up. Com- 
mence to air the eggs when you com- 
rnence to turn them, that is 48 hours 
after they have been in thg machine. 
The air space in the egg should be at 
the large end. I think if you follow 
the directions from the maker of the 
machine, and these hints, you will 
have a good hatch. 



Indigestion — What is wrong with 
my ducks? They are almost full 
grown, and they turn over on their 
backs and are unable to get up; they 
are very weak; their eyes scale over 
and some of them liave died. They 
act very much like chickens with the 
roup, only they do not swell arotxnd 
the head.— Mrs. J. G. C 

Answer — Your ducks are suffering 
from indigestion and also from their 
heads being stopped up. The indi- 
gestion comes partly from their not 
having sufficient sand with their food, 
and their heads being stopped up. 
comes from the drinking vessel not 
being deep enough so they can rinse 



their nostrils out many times during 
the day. If you remedy these two 
causes of trouble in the duck yard 
and feed them properly, giving but 
little whole grain, I think they will 
soon recover. 



A Good Ration — We have thirty 
ducks, Indian Runners. They all quit 
laying the middle of July. They are 
fed bran, corn meal, beef scraps and 
sand, in a dry mash; tliey have shells, 
charcoal, and twenty acres of alfalfa 
to run on, and several times a sum- 
mer, an irrigating ditc'h to swim in. 
It seems to me they should not stop 
laying until September or October. 
Now, why would not Mr. Fox's re- 
cipe start them? If you remember, 
it consists of the following: Take 
10 lbs. bone meal, 10 fbs. beef scraps, 
5 lbs. fenugreek, 2 lbs. sulphur, 2 lbs. 
charcoal, Yz lb. cayenne pepper, Yj 
tb. salt; mix and keep; put half pint 
in the mash every morning for 20 
hens. It works to a charm with our 
Leg^horns. I fed it all last winter and 
up to the present time, onljr leaving 
out red pepper in summer. W^ould 
the sulphur and red pepper be in- 
jurious to the ducks? 

One more question: You say don't 
feed yellow corn to white hens. I 
cannot get white corn, and oats are 
too high. Now, what is the matter 
with bran, rolled barley and Egyptian 
Corn for hens? — N. E. M. 

Answer — Sorry to hear that your 
Indian Runners have gone on a 
strike. Indian Runners usually rest 
in September and October, making up 
in the other ten months of the year 
with great prolificacy. You had bet- 
ter let them rest for their two months, 
and then try the effect of ^Ir. Fox's 
to-nic. It is a good one I know, and 
the red pepper and sulphur will not 
hurt the ducks, although if the weath- 
er be warm, it would be better to 
halve the quantity of redi pepper. 

The Ep-vptian corn would do well 
in replacing the yellow corn. The 
analysis of the two are very much 
alike, but there is not as much of the 
yellow pigment in the Egyptian corn, 
and I would advise it instead of the 
common Indian corn. Bran, rolled 
barley and Egyptian corn would make 
an excellent ration. 



Two Questions — I enjoyed your 
article on ducks, but it did not cover 
all I wished to know. Do ducks need 



ABOUT DUCKS 



191 



to have water more than for drinking 
purposes? How many ducks to one 
drake?— D. B. • 

Answer — Ducks do not require wa- 
ter except for drinking purposes, al- 
though they enjoy a bath occasionally 
as much as we do. 

■ With Pekins, five ducks to one 
drake is the rule. With Indian Run- 
ners one drake is sufficient for ten 
ducks, and they do better with this 
number. 



Weight at Ten Weeks — Will you 
please inform me what weight most 
of t'he duck men can put on Indian 
Runner ducks at ten weeks? — I. L. R. 

Answer — Indian Runners at ten 
weeks of age weigh as much as do 
the Pekins at that time, namely, about 
eight pounds per pair. They should 
be sent to market at from eight to ten 
weeks of age. After that, the pin 
feathers develop, making them very 
hard to pick. I think you will be 
greatly pleased with the ducks when 
you try them. Their flesh is very de. 
iicious. fine grained and the bones 
are small. They have very much the 
flavor of the canvas-back, and I have 
heard, are sometimes sold instead of 
them. They are also the greatest 
layers of any known fowl; the eggs 
are white and very delicious, with no 
strong" taste like the eggs of other 
varieties of ducks. 



To Secure Fertility — I am starting 
to raise Indian Runner ducks and 
want to ask you how many ducks to 
put with one drake of this variety, so 
as to secure the highest possible fer- 
tility of eggs without keeping un- 
necessarj' drakes? I have a flock of 
20 ducks and within a few days will 
be readv to start my incubator, so if 
you will kindly reply as soon as pos- 
sible, I will be very much obliged to 
you— L. F. R. 

Answer — The number of Indian 
Runner ducks to one drake is 10. 
This has been found to be the best 
number for Indian Runners, althoug'h 
you can mate fifteen ducks to one 
drake and have good fertility. I 
want, however, to warn you that the 
eggs are not nearly so fertile in the 
Fall and Winter as they are in t'he 
Spring, so you must not be disap- 
pointed if at least half of the eggs are 
infertile at this time of the year. To 



increase the fertility, would advise 
you to increase the amount of animal 
food you are feeding. You can tell in 
five days of incubation whether the 
.eggs are fertile and those that are not 
fertile should be removed from the 
incubator and can be used for cook- 
ing or eating. They are merely in- 
fertile eggs that have been kept in a 
warm place for five days, and are 
better than most store eggs. 



Feeding: for Eggs — I bought some 
Indian Runner ducks, thirty-six in 
all, and six drakes. They were lay- 
ing up to the middle of December; 
since then that have layed none. I 
feed them about everything • that 
would come from a first-class hotel, 
- — bread, meat, oat and corn-meal 
mush, all kinds of vegtable and fruit. 
Three times a week I mix cracked 
corn and bran. I feed in the morn- 
ing, twelve quarts, same amount at 
night. They have access to plenty 
of running water and keep perfectly 
clean. The pen is covered with for- 
est leaves that makes it warm. What 
I want to know is, am I feeding right 
for laying later on? Is it customary 
to pick them? Does it affect their 
laying? I have over two hundred 
eggs engaged at 10 cents a piece. I 
want to raise all I can the coming 
season. — J. W. A. 

Answer — I think that your hotel waste 
may have rather more bread in it than 
is good for egg production. Indian 
Runner ducks usually stop laying in 
October, commencing again in De- 
cember, and getting into full lay in 
February. The best time for hatch- 
ing Indian Runners is from the first 
of February to the end of July; the 
eggs are very fertile at such time. It 
may be that you are fattening the 
ducks too much, as over-fat ducks do 
inot lay well. They require much 
more animal food than chickens. In 
their wild state they live on grasses, 
fish, frogs and insects, with but very 
little grain. If you think they are 
getting too much bread, you might 
save some of it for chickens, and in- 
crease the amount of meat; keep 
them well supplied with coarse sand, 
grit and crushed oyster shells. 

Picking the ducks aflfects their lay- 
ing, and it greatly prevents the 
drakes from beinpf fertile. While 
they are moulting the eggs are never 
fertile. 



192 



MRS. BASLEY'S POULTRY BOOK 



Geese — I have a few geese and just 
lately they have started to lay; gather 
from four to six daily. 'D'o you think 
by turning- them daily I might save 
them up for incubation? About 
w'hat degree should be kept up for 
them? I put seven eggs under a hen. 
Would you also tell me what should 
baby geese be fed? — J. W. 

Answer — You can keep geese eggs, 
by turning them every day, for three 
weeks. They take thirty days to in- 
cubate. The incubator should be 
about 102^ for the first week and 
103 afterwards. Five eggs is plenty 
to put under a hen. See instructions 
in this book for hatching duck eggs 
in an incubator. Treat goose eggs 
in the same way. Feed baby geese 
the same as. baby ducks for the first 
week, gradually adding chopped let- 
tuce until at least half their food is 
green food. Geese are grazing ani- 
mals and require plenty of green, suc- 
culent food. They are very easy to 
raise and do not require brooder heat 
more than a few days. 

Ducks, Turkeys, Geese — I have read 
so many articles from your pen and 
they have been of so much help to me 
that now that I am in trouble I will 
be very thankful if you will give me 
some advice. 

I had some little ducks that were 
hatched a week aeo. I fed them next 
day bread crumbs with a fountain of 
water near; afterwards on cornmeal 
mixed with water and baked, then 
moistened with milk. They had 
plenty of water to drink. T have to 
keep them in a box at night, as I 
took them away from the'turkey they 
were hatched under. When four 
days old on taking them out in the 
morning one dumped around and 
would neither eat or drink. It 
breathed hard like a child with fever. 
It lived twenty-four hours and died. 
I now have them in a pen where there 
is a shallow ditch and running water. 
Another was taken the same way this 
morning and died at noon. I found 
a solid yellow substance, not overly 
hard, inside of it. I took it to be the 
yolk of the egg. 

I would like to know where the 
trouble is and what I did that I 
should not have done; also what can 
I do to save the 'balance of them? I 
have three hens to hatch in about a 
week, and I do not want to make the 
same mistake again. How soon after 



hatching is it safe to put the little 
ducks in tihe pen with running water? 
Can I hatch duck, turkey and goose 
eggs in the same incubator together? 
About how much and how often 
should little ducks be fed? — M. V. A. 

Answer — You have made one great 
omission in feeding the little ducks. 
Always give the litUe ducks sand 
sprinkled on the food they eat. This 
is absolutely necessary. Your little 
ducks seem to have been chilled, 
either from the water being too cold 
or from their taking cold from be- 
ing removed from their mother. In 
this climate ducks only require heat 
for a short time, but tbey should not 
be allowed to get into water until 
they are eight weeks old, or they 
will get the cramps and die. 

Geese eggs do not do well in an 
incubator, and I would not advise 
your putting them in with turkey and 
duck eggs. 

Little ducks require to be fed five 
times a day at first. I feed them bran 
and rolled oats with c'hopped lettuce, 
and always a teaspoonful of sand. 
Give them water to drink all the time 
in a vessel deep enough to get their 
whole bill under, as they have to 
rinse tbeir nostrils each time they 
eat, but aiot deep enough for them 
to get into. 



Breeding Rocks and Geese — I have 
a flock of Plymouth Rock chickens; 
fourteen hens and two roosters; now, 
what I want to know is, would you 
recommend me to get a different 
rooster, as both of my roosters are 
related to the hens? They are all 
from the same pen, and are pure 
blooded stock. I do not want to in- 
breed if it will harm next year's 
chicks. My Ihens are over six months 
old. I also have some thorougrbred 
Toulouse Geese which are related to 
one another. Should I change gan- 
ders this season? I used the same 
one last year but my geese are not 
as large this year as the ones I raised 
two- years ago. — Mrs. R. L. 

Answ'er — If your Plymouth Rock 
chickens are not full brother and sis- 
ter you can mate them together if 
they are vigorous without inbreeding 
too closely. About the geese: I 
think that the reason your geese are 
not as large this year is that this 
year the mother geese were too young, 
or it may be that you did not feed 
them rightly. 



TTHE Adver- 
tisers in this 
book are recora- 
mended by Mrs. 
Basley as being 
responsible and 
strictly reliable 
in their dealings. 
q You will find 
them worthy of 
your patronage. 





The place where you 
buy at a bargain and 
sell at at profit. 

^ Raise poultry where 
poultry raising is a suc- 
cess. Own a fa m in 
the Inglewood Poultry 
Colony and you will find 
that the Poultry 
Business is ... ' 

Pleasant 
Practical 
Profitable 

Correspond with... 
INGLEWOOD WATER COMPANY 

Room 349, No. 2.06 S. Spring Street Los Angeles, Cal. 



AGGELER & MUSSER SEED CO. 

SUCCESSOR TO 

Johnson & Musser Seed Co. 



113-115 N. Main Street 



Los Angeles, Cal. 



TIJEADQUARTERS for Poultry Supplies 
and Poultry Foods. Southern California 
Agents for the popular Petaluma Incubators 
and Brooders. Our Seeds are famous through- 
out the Southwest for Reliability. Write at 
once for our new catalogue of garden, field and 
flower seeds. Eucalyptus a specialty. All 
varieties of Nursery Stock and Poultry Supplies. 



West Coast Seed Co. 



115 W. 7th St., Phones: Main 5631 Home F-5381 

LOS ANGELES, CAL. 

The Best Place to Buy the Best 

POULTRY SUPPLIES 



At the best prices and get best value. 
Just try us. Send for free catalogue 
and price list. ::: ::: ::: 

WE MAKE "PACIFIC" AND "BUSINESS" 

Incubators and Brooders 

Factory : Cor. Griffin and Alhambra Streets 




IS edited ty Mrs. Basley, that is wnat makes it 
tne best poultry magazine in the -west. All her 
best articles ana ans-w^ers to questions are printed 
in the Xrihune each iponth. It is only 50 cents .a 
year, so you can hardly airord to be vv^ithout it, tor 
it -will surely help you with your poultry. Send for it. 

^ Ir you have anything to sell the -way to sell it is to 
advertise in the Tribune. It has the biggest list or readers 
and will bring you big returns for the money invested. 



ADDRESS 



LIVE STOCK TRIBUNE 

624-625 Chamber of Commerce Bldg. Los Angeles, Cal. 



WHERE TO BUY BREEDING STOCK AND EGGS 



Here is What Gardner's Buff Wyandoites 

did at the last Los Angeles Show, January, 190S: Won the Great A. 
P. A. Medal for Best Cockerel in the Hhow. P«nir Silver Clips, And 22 
ribbons on 20 birds. If you are looking- for the best, I liave it. I^et 
me know your wants and I will surely please \ou. Stock and eggs 
for sale. 

T. T. GARDNER, Prop., Wyandotte Farm, R. F. D.. No. 1-B, Gardena. Cal. 



R. G. PAGE 



Phone Broadway 5594 



Breeder of 



SINGLE COMB BLACK MINORCAS 

Eggs for hatching a specialty. Correspondence Solicited. 

1227 W. lOth Street Los Angeles, Cal. 




BARRED PLYMOUTH ROCKS 

BellevHe Strain, Bred Kxelusively by 

prederick; esf»e 

44i;."» So. j>lsiiii St., lios Angeles, Cal. 

Finest Type of Fowls for Show, and Utility as well. 
Winners of neai'ly all 1st and 2nd prizes for past three 
years, at Breeders Assn. Show, .at Los Angeles. 

Prices always reasonable. 



:hue poultry 

ESTABLISHED 1902 

Rhode Island Reds, White Plymouth Rocks. Always winners and 
always strong, hardy, heavy laying stock ::: ::: ::: 

753 North Lake Avenue Pasadena, Cal, 



WHITE INDIAM RUNNER DUCKS 

Only Stock in Southern California. Eggs and Stock for Sale. 

White Leghorns from Howard's Celebrated Strain ^ 

White Wyandottes. Fine breeding stock and eggs of both White Leghorns 
and White Wyandottes for Sale. Correspondence invited. 



MRS. M. E. GREY 



R. F. D. No. 4, Box 78, Los Angeles, Cal. 



Take Redondo Moneta Car to Howland Ave., West 2 blocks to Figueroa St. 



Megnin's Poultry Prescription 

A double package in dry form. Tlie White Powder is the IVIOST CER- 
TAIN cure known for roup, etc. The Brown Powder is the great 
specific for bowel diseases in chicks and older stock. Tliis is also a tonic, 
invigorating and renewing the strength of the fowls, and iiiereasiu;;' the 
eg;g prodiiotion. 

Price, postpaid, 30 cents. Goes furtlier tlian $1 worth of other 
remedies, 

California Poultry Food Co., 3017 S. Main Street, Los Angele*, Cal. 

Complete Stock of Poultry Supplies and Seeds. Largest Stock of 
ILaying Hens and Pullets in the city, at very low prices. 



WHERE TO BUY BREEDING STOCK AND EGGS 



white: wyandottes 

Bred larae ninl true Ut type. Specijil sitteutiou siven to esrK itrotliic- 
tion. >ly inatins's tliis year are very eli«»iee. .\otiiiuK' hut toii-uoteher.s 
ii.se<l in my breeding pens. E^kj^s and stoek in seaNitn. A. W. HUSKINS, 
713" WATERLOO ST.,.I.OS ANGELES, CAL. Plume Temple 1>4S. 



A. H. Johnson 



S. C. Rhode Island Reds 



Bred to Lay. Why not have a strain of layers Hke mine? Eggs for sale, 

$8.00 per 100. Glendale Car to Dryden Street, 3 blocks west. 

Home Phone 902. Address BurbanK, Cal., R.F.D. No. 1, Box 159 




[ast San Gabriel Egg Ranch 

S. C. White Leghorns 

Hatcliing" eg-gs from our Slan- 
(lard bred utility stock, $5 per 
too; $45 per 1000. From prize 
winning stock $2 per 13. Won 
-L firsts at Breeders' Sliovv, Los 
Aneeles, Jan. igoS. and ,3 firsts 
at I^ong- Beach Show, Sept. igo8.. 
Stock and esfss in season. 



Swanson (§^ Johnson 

San Gabriel, Cal. 



#^% 



5indle Comb- Rose Comb 

^^^RHODE ISLAND REDS co) 

^^^ Red Ba.nha.ms <^i 
■ y\ Monrovia^. ^^^^ 



WINSIOW'S REDS 



Are are results of careful ming- 
ling of tlie bluest blnods, and 
Greatest Laj-ing Strains of 
Rhode Island Reds in America. 
They liave no superior on the 
Coast. Send for mating list. 

Red feather Poultry Yards 

Dr. C. E. Winshnv, Prop. 

P. O. Box 368 Phone j8i 

304 Charlotte Ave.. Monrovia. 

Send stamp for Rhode Island Red Standard 

Member of Rhode Island Red Club 

of America 



IV e Are Experienced 

Poultry Men and 
Manufacturers 

Add to this our exceptional facilities and ability to buy our material 
and supplies direct in krge quantities and at the lowest price, and you 
will understand Why We Can Save You Money on Everything that 
you need in the Poultry Lines. A visit to our Store and Thorough- 
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Let Us Prove — Our Claims Are Facts 




Our New Store, Poultry Yards in Rear 

We are Southern California agents for 

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Permanent Exhibit of Thoroughbred Poultry. Nothing to equal 
it in Souther" "'alifornia. 

EGGS FOR HATCHING BABY CHICKS 

Best Equipped, Up-to-Date, Most Complete, Reli- 
able Poultry Supply House on tHe Pacific Coast. 

Write for one of our beautiful souvenir post cards and new catalogue. 
It contains valuable Poultry hints. IT IS FREE. 

KLONINGER BROS. COMPANY 

845 South Spring Street, Los Angeles, Cal. 

MAIN 4379 



r 11890 
JOHN D. MERCER 



Phone A-6633 



BREEDER OF 




-r^f/ 



Cornish Fowls 

Formerly Known As Indian Games 

104 West First Street Los Angeles. Col. 



Eggs and Stock for Sale 



Yards 1501 N. Vermont Avenue 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




s*j <" s i) 
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«> c 



